The Curse of an Imp
by KingdomHeartsNerd
Summary: What if Regina, in one act of humane kindness, had been unable to sacrifice her father and cast the curse? What if Rumplestiltskin had sacrificed something very dear to him to cast it? What if the curse had created other effects too?
1. Pilot

**The Curse of an Imp**

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**Disclaimer:** _I own nothing. If I did, then the events of the end of Series 2 would never have happened that way. Ever. Once Upon a Time and all related concepts belong to Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis._

**Summary:** _What if Regina, in one act of humane kindness, had been unable to sacrifice her father and cast the curse? What if Rumplestiltskin had sacrificed something very dear to him to cast it? What if the curse had created other effects too?_

_Thanks to xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx - who is awesome - for being my beta, for suggesting some of the ideas in this story (and letting me use them) and for helping me plan this story._

**Extra Info:** _Belle is back with Rumplestiltskin - I will explain how as the story goes on in a "In Fairytale Land: Flashback" mode._

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**Chapter One: Pilot**

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**_Once Upon A Time_**

**_There was an enchanted forest filled with all the classic characters we know._**

**_Or think we know._**

**_One day they found themselves trapped in a place where all their happy endings were stolen._**

**_Our world._**

**_This is how it happened..._**

_Prince Charming, cloak flapping in the wind and clutching the reigns of his steed, spurred the animal on through the falling snow; it thundered blisteringly across the landmass stretching between the ocean and the forest where his true love had last been sighted. He couldn't help but smile at the thought of her._

_The smile was soon wiped from his face as he found his path blocked by the Seven Dwarves and a glass coffin. The ring, which had been enchanted by Rumplestiltskin, glowed brightly, indicating that his True Love was close. Charming felt his heart stop beating, he slipped from his horse and run the rest of the way towards the coffin._

_"You're too late," said one of the dwarves; spectacled, bearded and wearing a red hat, it was Doc, though Charming did not know this, who had spoken. The Seven Dwarves were stood, stoically and silently, around a glass coffin intricately crafted from a white leaf patterned pane of glass._

_"No!" breathed Prince Charming, staring, horrified, down at the occupant inside. "No!"_

_Snow White, dark haired and pink lipped with her hands on her chest, slept soundly inside._

_If anyone had looked at her they would never have guessed that she was under a sleeping curse, damning her to sleep for all eternity unless awoken by true loves kiss._

_"Open it," ordered Prince Charming._

_"I'm sorry," protested another dwarf, this one very grumpy looking, black haired and wearing a neckerchief. "She's gone."_

_Prince Charming's head fell, sad and defeated. Teary eyed, he stared up at the grumpy dwarf. "At least let me say goodbye."_

_The dwarves looked to each other and, united once more for their love of Snow White, heaved off the lid._

_Prince Charming knelt down. If this was to be his goodbye kiss, then both he and Snow were going to know that. He lowered his head to her face and pressed his lips to hers, kissing her with all the love his heart held for her._

_As he did so, a wave of energy exploded from Snow White and soared across the land making it brighter and lighter than it had been since her enchanted slumber had begun._

_Snow White gasped, her hazel eyes blinking open to reveal a beaming Prince Charming._

_"You," she smiled, cupping his cheek affectionately. "You found me."_

_Stroking her head with his right hand and holding her arm gently with his left hand, he asked. "Did you ever doubt I would?"_

_"Truthfully?" she asked, as he helped her to sit up. "The glass coffin gave me pause."_

_"You never have to worry," he assured her. "For I will always find you."_

_"Do you promise?" she asked, as he stroked her hair affectionately._

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

One. Two. Three. Four.

_Rumplestiltskin counted the stitches in front of him as he made the edits to the curse. First, his darling Belle would be safe; second, she, like him, would remember on hearing the name of the saviour, third, he would not have to give up Belle's heart - or any heart - just something more special to him than anything else in the entire realms; fourth, he and Belle would, unlike in this world, be married._

Marriage.

_He paused, almost whimsically, and mused over it; he and Belle _had_ intended to be married, but Belle had agreed - after he had informed her as to why he needed magic - that travelling to this new world to find his son, Bealfire, was the most important thing._

_"Is it ready?" asked Belle, approaching him from behind; he swirled around on the stool to face her. She was illuminated in the moonlight streaming from the small gap between the currently closed curtains. She had long brown hair, a pleasing figure and a kind, smiling face._

_"Yes, dearie," he said, holding it up with his familiar flourish. "It's done; when this curse is cast we will end up married in another land. A land without magic."_

_"Can you do it?" she asked, watching his reaction closely. "Give up three hundred years of using magic?"_

_"Yes," he assured her. "I must. For Bae. For you."_

_"The curse," she said, gesturing to the parchment in hand. "When will you cast it? Soon?"_

_"Not just yet, Belle," he replied, swiveling around on the chair so that he was facing the spinning wheel in front of him. "The time isn't right yet - no; the time will be right when Regina launches her final assault on Snow White and Prince Charming. When that happens, I will have this," he waved a hand, summoning a shining purple bottle, "put somewhere special - then, the curse will be activated by Regina - or if she fails, by me, using a second version - and we'll be sent to this other world... and I can find my boy."_

_"And, just how will I remember? I will not be hearing the saviour's name and you never mentioned what you were planning."_

_"Ah, well, as to that! Here's where my plan becomes delicious – and right under the Queen's nose too! Nyahaha! Quite simply, Belle, true love should tell you."_

_To anyone eavesdropping on their conversation it would have sounded like mere chatter; to them it made absolute sense._

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

_"I do."_

_Prince Charming and Snow White stood together in front of a bishop._

_"And do you, Snow White, promise to take this man as your husband and love him for all eternity?"_

_Snow White, her hair intricately melded into two large bunches and littered with flowers, beamed the brightest smile anyone had ever seen. "I do."_

_"I now pronounce you husband and wife."_

_Everyone burst into applause; the commoners, the nobility, the gentry and ever the dwarves. Doc, who had seen that Grumpy was not clapping, elbowed him and, a smile actually gracing his normally perpetual grumpy face, Grumpy began to clap along with the crowd._

_Prince Charming and Snow White leaned forward to kiss, their lips inches apart when -_

**_BANG!_**

_The double doors burst open; Regina, tall, elegant and dressed in black, was stood in the doorway, smirking. "Sorry I'm late."_

_She made her way down the aisle towards her former step-daughter and her new husband. Two guards sprinted down the aisle to stop her and were thrown aside with a mere flick of Regina's wrists._

_"It's the Queen!" cried Doc. "Run!"_

_"She's not a Queen anymore!" said Snow White as she unsheathed her husband's sword from the holster on his waist and pointed it directly at the most hated woman in all of the realms. Regina stopped, smiling incredulously at her former step-daughter's brashness. "She's nothing but an evil witch!"_

_"No, no," Prince Charming interrupted his wife, raising a hand to lower the sword. "Don't stoop to her level - there's no need." As Snow White lowered the sword he directed his next words at his wife's former step-mother. "You're wasting your time; you've already lost and I will not let you ruin this wedding."_

_Sword drawn, Prince Charming stepped in front of his wife, shielding her from Regina._

_"Oh, I haven't come here to ruin anything," Regina was smirking, almost victoriously. "On the contrary dear; I've come to give you a gift."_

_"We want nothing from you!" snapped Snow White._

_"But you shall have it!" interrupted Regina; she turned away, yet still remained looking at her, and then turned to face the crowd, circling as she did so. "My gift to you..." Regina sounded rather disgusted at the thought of giving someone who had ruined her life a gift. "...is this happy, happy day. For tomorrow, my real work begins! You've made your vows. Now I make mine. Soon, everything you love - everything all of you love - will be taken from you. Forever. And, out of your suffering, will rise my victory. I shall destroy your happiness... if it is the last thing I do."_

_And, her threat and gift both given and received, Regina whirled around, striding her way back down the aisle._

_"HEY!" thundered Prince Charming. Regina whirled around to see his sword flying at her._

_Smirking, she disappeared in a puff of smoke, taking the sword with her._

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

Henry Mills, brown haired, rather chubby and ten-years-old, wearing a black overcoat, black trousers, a button up blue shirt that strained a little around his tubby middle and a red and sickly green scarf to keep himself warm in the crisp October air, sat on a bus arriving in Boston; in his lap rested an open book. Prince Charming and Snow White, both staring, concerned and awestruck, at where Queen Regina had been, were on the page.

"That a good book?" asked the woman from the seat on the opposite side of the aisle.

"This?" he asked. "It's more than just a book."

Before the woman could reply, the intercom on the bus said their destination and the bus came to a shuddering halt, allowing everyone to get off. Henry, book now shoved into his grey backpack, looked around and spotted a taxi.

He knocked on the window and the driver lowered the window with the electric button.

"Uh, you take credit cards?" asked Henry, holding one up.

"Where too, chief?"

If the fact that a ten-year-old boy, with nothing but his clothes, a backpack, a book and a credit card, struck the driver as odd, he didn't say a word.

Today, fate seemed to be on the side of Henry Mills.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

Across the city in a very fancy restaurant, Emma Swan, twenty eight, blonde, slim and very attractive in a form fitting salmon coloured dress, emerged from the elevator.

She made her way through the restaurant; several men ogled her, but she had no interest in any of them. The man sitting at the nearby table, however, was of interest to her; Ryan Marlow, originally from New York - where his wife and three children remained - was sat waiting.

Seeing her arrive, he rolled up his napkin and stood up, holding out a hand. "Emma?"

"Ryan?" she questioned, shaking his hand. "You look relieved."

"Well, it is the internet," he replied; she nodded in acknowledgement - many of her former online internet dates had been disaster due to lies and deceit from the people on the other end. "Pictures can be-"

"Faked? Outdated? Stolen from a Victoria Secret Catalogue?"

The fact that it was she who had offered up the ideas would, normally, have sent warning bells blaring in any normal man's head. Ryan, to Emma's relief, remained blissfully unaware of her true identity.

"So," Ryan began, linking his hands together and sitting down opposite her. "Tell me something about yourself, Emma."

"Oh, well, today's my birthday," Emma seemed disappointed with that fact, almost sad even.

"And you're spending it with me. What about your friends?"

"Kind of a loner," she replied.

"And, you don't like your family?" guessed Ryan.

"No family to like," Emma informed him; unlike the fact about her birthday, she did not seem sad nor disappointed, merely resigned to the fact.

"Everyone has family," he replied.

"Technically, yeah," replied Emma, conceding to his point. "And everyone knows who they are... ready to run yet?" she asked, wondering if the date was becoming a disaster.

Ryan scoffed, "Ooh, not a chance! You, Emma, are, by far, the most sexiest, friendless orphan that I have ever met

Both laughed, the ice and tension broken.

"Ok," Emma said. "Your turn. No, wait! Let me guess! You are handsome, charming-"

"Go on," he pressed.

"- the kind of guy who, now stop me if I get this wrong, embezzled from your employer, got arrested and skipped town before they were able to throw your ass in jail."

"What?"

"And the worst part of all this," continued Emma, "Is your wife. Your wife loves you so much that she bailed you out! And how do you repay that loyalty? You're on a date."

Ryan realised that Emma knew more than she should; his jaw straight and hard. "Who are you?" he asked.

She leaned across the table, unable to keep the smugness out of her voice. "The chick who put up the rest of the money."

"A bail bondsman."

"A bail bondsperson," she corrected; he laughed to himself and then, without even so much as a warning, upturned the table and ran, splattering wine onto Emma's dress, making her sigh. "Really?"

Ryan burst through the downstairs door of the restaurant and darted between the cars. As he did so, Emma emerged from the restaurant and followed him across the street; cars swerved and horns honked, but not one of them hit her.

Ryan whipped out his keys and electronically unlocked the door of his car which he wrenched open before diving inside. He started the car and revved the engine then put his foot on the accelerator; the car rumbled, but didn't move. Opening the door again, Ryan caught sight of the tire lock on his back wheel.

"You don't have to do this, ok?" he said, desperately. "I can pay you. I've got money."

"No you don't," Emma replied. "And if you did, you should give it to your wife to take care of your family."

"What the hell d'you know about family, huh?" he sneered.

Grabbing him by the shoulders Emma slammed him into the steering wheel, knocking him unconscious and setting the car off into a constant honk.

"Nothing."

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

Arriving home, Emma kicked off her heels and opened the paper bag that she had bought from the bakery. A cupcake with white icing sat inside; taking it out she put it onto the desk, and took one of the candles from drawer, placing it on top

Lighting it, Emma leaned down on her crossed arms and stared at the cupcake. "Another banner year."

She closed her eyes, making a wish, and blew out the candle. Seconds later, almost as if fate was laughing in her face, the doorbell rang with.

With a frown, Emma returned to the door and opened it. Nobody was there. She then saw somebody shuffle and looked down; a small chubby boy, no older than ten or eleven, stood in front of her.

"Uh, can I help you?"

"Are you Emma Swan?" the boy asked, totally ignoring her question.

"Yeah," Emma replied. "Who're you?"

"My name is Henry," he replied, licking his lips anxiously. "I'm your son!"

He pushed past her and into the apartment, Emma protesting. "Oh, hey, hey, kid, kid! I don't have a son. Where are your parents?"

He turned to her, from his position by the island in the middle of her kitchen; staring at her with alarmingly familiar eyes, he asked. "Ten years ago, did you give a baby up for adoption?" Emma looked utterly struck. "That was me."

"Give me a sec," she bleated, scrambling into her bathroom and shutting the door firmly behind her.

As she breathed heavily, leaning on the door, Henry's voice called. "Hey, do you have any juice? Never mind. Found some."

Emma emerged from the bathroom and saw Henry was drinking directly from a bottle of orange juice. He swallowed and then looked up at her. "You know, we should probably get going."

"Going where?"

"I want you to come home with me," said Henry, staring up at her with big puppy dog eyes.

"Ok, kid, I'm calling the cops," she crossed the room and picked up the phone.

"And I'll tell them you kidnapped me," he replied.

Damn, he had her there, she had to admit; closing her eyes once, she admitted. "And they'll believe you because I'm your birth mother."

"Yep!" replied Henry, popping the 'p'. By now, Emma was very sure that this boy was her son - he had his father's eyes and ears and her chin.

"You're not gonna do that," she replied; whether it was an order or a request, Emma herself didn't know.

"Try me," urged Henry.

"You're good," replied Emma, looking down to the form of Henry, who was still smiling cutely up at her. "But here's the thing - there's not a lot I'm great at in life, but I have one skill; let's call it a super power. I can tell when anyone is lying, and you, kid, are."

She dialled the numbers on the phone.

"Wait," interrupted Henry, his voice pleading. "Please don't call the cops. Please. Come home with me."

"Where is home?" Emma inquired.

"Storybrooke, Maine," replied Henry; he was waiting to see if she made the connection as to what his home town sounded like.

She did, as she asked. "Storybrooke? Seriously?"

Henry's slow nod confirmed it all.

Emma sighed. "Alrighty then, let's get you back to Storybrooke."

Smirking victoriously, Henry hopped off of the stool and followed after his birth mother.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

_Hand on her heavily pregnant stomach, Snow White leaned against the doorway to the balcony of their castle, which they had successfully liberated from Prince Charming's father, King George. A small blue bird flew off of her finger and disappeared into the distance._

_"What's wrong?" asked Prince Charming, approaching her._

_"Nothing," she replied._

_"You're thinking about what the Queen said again, aren't you? Snow, please, I can't keep having this conversation - you have to let it go! We're about to have a baby."_

_"I haven't had a restful night since our wedding," moaned Snow, waddling to the bed._

_"That's what she wants!" protested Prince Charming, following after his wife. "To get in your head, but they're only words. She can't hurt us."_

_Snow White stared at her husband as if he had suddenly grown an extra head. "She poisoned an apple because she thought I was prettier than her. You have no idea what she is capable of."_

_"What can I do to ease your worry?"_

_"Let me talk... to him."_

_"Him?" questioned Prince Charming, confused/ "You don't mean-?"_

_"I do."_

_"No, no. No, it's too dangerous," protested Prince Charming._

_"He sees the future."_

_"There's a reason he's locked up!"_

_"Can you promise me our child will be safe? Can you guarantee it? Because he can."_

_Prince Charming turned away, thinking over his wife's request and begs. __Finally, turning back to her, he nodded. "Alright. For our child."_

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

Emma drove Henry out of Boston in her yellow Volkswagen Beetle. He stared out of the window, and then at her.

"I'm hungry," he moaned, rubbing his tubby middle. "Wanna stop somewhere?"

"This is not a road trip, we're not stopping for snacks."

"Why not?"

"Quit complaining kid. Remember, I could've put your butt on a bus; I still could!"

"You know, I have a name. it's Henry," He started to flick through the book in his lap.

"What's that?" Emma glanced, only briefly so as not to crash.

"I'm not sure you're ready," Henry's reply was a murmur. Unfortunately for him, he and Emma were in a car and she heard every word.

"Ready for some fairy tales?"

His head snapped up, almost as if offended. "They're not fairy tales," he said, looking over to her. "They're true. Every story in this book actually happened."

Emma managed to make her sigh audible so as not to offend him. "'Course they did."

"Use your super power," he urged. "See if I'm lying."

"Just because you believe something doesn't make it true."

"That's exactly what makes it true. You should know more than anyone."

"Why is that?"

"Because you're in this book."

"Oh, kid," sighed Emma. "You've got problems."

"Yep," Henry said. "And you're gonna fix 'em."

She looked from him to the road.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

_Rumplestiltskin lounged lazily in his cell when he heard the large metallic door of the mines clank shut. The guard leading two people towards his cell was speaking. "When we reach the cell, stay out of the light, and whatever you do, do not let him know your name. If he knows your name, he will have power over you," then he called. "Rumplestiltskin. Rumplestiltskin! I have a question for you."_

_Rumplestiltskin clambered down from the tree root like a monkey, swinging himself elegantly so that he was standing in front of the bars; he was a disgusting sight; brownish, reptilian scale like skin, long thickly matted hair and a leather suit._

_"No, you don't," he trilled condescendingly. "They do. Snow White — and Prince Charming!" he gave an insane cackle and then his voice went deadly serious. "You insult me. Step into the light, and take off those ridiculous robes." The two slipped their robes off. "Ah, ha-ha ha... that's much better."_

_"We've come to ask you about the-"_

_"Yes, yes, I know why you're here!" Rumplestiltskin snapped, a maniacal look crossing over his face as he cut off Prince Charming and leered at them through the bars of his cell. "You want to know about the Queen's threat, though given that you've kept me imprisoned here for near enough six months, I'm not sure I should help, but beggars can't be choosers."_

_"Tell us what you know," commanded Snow White._

_"Ohh! Tense, aren't we?" he asked, smirking through the bars. "Fear not for I can ease your mind! But i's gonna cost you something in return."_

_"No," commanded Prince Charming, taking Snow White protectively by the arm. "This is a waste of time."_

_Snow White ignored him and stepped forward, so that she was as close to the cell as she could be. "What do you want?"_

_"Ohm sighed Rumplestiltskin, sounding very satisfied. "The name of your unborn child?"_

_"Absolutely not!" exploded Prince Charming, gripping Snow White's arm even tighter._

_Once again, Snow cut off her husband; she stared at Rumplestiltskin and said. "Deal. What do you know?"_

_"Ah," breathed Rumplestiltskin, smiling smugly in victory; he wiggled his fingers like a child who had just been given sweets as he continued. "The Queen has created a powerful curse. And it's coming. Soon you'll all be in a prison. Just like me! Only worse. Nyahaha. Your prison - all of our prisons - will be time. And time will stop. And we will be trapped, someplace horrible, where everything we hold dear, everything we love, will be ripped from us while we suffer for all eternity, while the Queen celebrates, victorious at last!" His voice, which had become rather maniacal as he had spoken, now became pouting as he finished. "...No more happy endings."_

_"What can we do?" inquired Snow White. Rumplestiltskin could hear the determination and fear in her voice._

_"We can't do anything," he exclaimed, laughing._

_"Who can?" asked Snow White. Prince Charming began to move forward._

_Rumplestiltskin stretched languidly, a hand snaking its way through the bars; he stared at Snow White's stomach and then pointed at it as he said. "That little thing growing inside your belly."_

_Prince Charming drew his sword and slapped Rumplestiltskin's hand with it. He glared evilly at him._

_"Next time," he threatened. "I cut it off."_

_"Tk, tk, tk, tk, tk. The infant is our only hope," said Rumplestiltskin to Prince Charming; then, his attention flicked back to Snow White, "Get the child to safety. Get the child to safety and on its- " he closed his eyes in concentration. "-twenty-eighth birthday, the child will return. The child will find you - and the final battle will begin!" an insane cackle burst free before he could even think of stopping it._

_"Heard enough," said Prince Charming, pulling Snow White away. "We're leaving."_

_As they left Rumplestiltskin whooped and cackled; a deranged scream exploded from him and, as he shook the bars of his prison so much that dust fell from the ceiling. "Hey! No! We made a deal! I want her name! We had a deal-" he shouted. "I. Need. Her. Name! I want her name!"_

_"Her?" asked Prince Charming, staring over his shoulder at Rumplestiltskin. "It's a boy," he started off again, but Snow White remained frozen in position._

_"Missy, missy — you know I'm right," tittered Rumplestiltskin. "Tell me. What's her name?"_

_Snow White closed her eyes, took a deep breath, turned and said, "Emma. Her name is Emma," and then continued walking before Prince Charming or the guard could stop her._

_"Emma," breathed Rumplestiltskin; then, something struck him. "Oh, and one more thing," Snow White and Prince Charming both stopped. "If you can, would you kindly inform my maid that everything needs to be ready? Consider it the second half of our deal. I told you how to beat the Queen's curse; you've given me the name of your baby. But to honour our deal, you can tell my maid that everything needs to be ready for the next full moon."_

_"What needs to be ready?" inquired Snow White._

_"She'll know - she's a smart girl."_

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

Emma's yellow beetle trundled into Storybrooke. By now, it was raining very heavily, almost as if the sky was attempting to cleanse the world of everything un-pure.

"Ok, kid," began Emma. "How about an address?"

"44 not telling you street."

Emma slammed her foot on the brake. Her beetle screeched to a halt and the fact that the breaks didn't squeal indicated that she had often done that. Throwing open the door, she slammed down a leather booted foot and closed the door. Above her, she missed the fact that an electrical line sparked.

"Look, it's been a long night, and it's almost-"

By now, Henry had gotten out of the car and joined her as she stared up at the clock above the library.

"Eight fifteen?" she questioned; it had to have been later, but she had no idea of the actual time.

"That clock hasn't worked my whole life," replied Henry, as if it was common sense that every person should know. "Time's frozen here."

"'Scuse me?"

"The Evil Queen did it with her curse. She sent everyone from the Enchanted Forest here."

"Hang on, an Evil Queen sent a bunch of fairy tale characters here?"

"Yeah, and now they're trapped."

"Frozen in time, stuck in Storybrooke, Maine? That's what you're going with?"

"It's true!" protested Henry.

"Why doesn't anybody just leave?"

"They can't. If they try, bad things happen."

"Henry!" a new voice interrupted Emma and Henry's conversation. Archie Hopper, the local therapist, was approaching. Wearing brown tweed and his hair sparse with a black umbrella in one hand and a dog lead in the other, Archie was the stereotypical 1980s therapist. "Is everything alright?"

"I'm fine, Archie," replied Henry, leaning down to stroke Pongo, who wined contentedly.

"Who's this?" inquired Archie, finally noticing Emma.

"Just someone trying to give him a ride home."

"She's my Mom, Archie."

"Oh," replied Archie, rather taken aback. "I see."

"You know where he lives?" asked Emma.

Archie stuttered for a few moments, racking his brain. "Yeah, sure, just right up on Mifflin Street. The Mayor's House is the biggest one on the block."

Henry hung his head; Emma stared down at him. "You're the Mayor's kid?"

"M-Maybe," he mumbled.

"Hey, where were you today, Henry? You missed our session."

"Oh, I forgot to tell you; I went on a field trip."

"Henry," Archie leaned down, so that he and Henry were, more-or-less, face to face. "What have I told you about lying? Giving into one's dark side never accomplishes anything."

"Ooook," Emma interrupted the very awkward conversation. "Well, I really should be getting him home."

"Yeah," agreed Archie. "Well, sure; have a good night, and, uh, you be good, Henry."

When Archie had walked away and was out of hearing distance, Emma turned to Henry.

"So that's your shrink?"

"I'm not crazy."

"Didn't say that," confirmed Emma. "Just... he doesn't seem cursed to me. Maybe he's just trying to help you?"

"He's the one who needs help," noted Henry. "He just doesn't know-"

"That he's a fairy tale character?"

"None of them do," said Henry. "None of them remember who they are."

As he made his way around to the other side of the car, Emma laughed to herself.

"Convenient. Alright, I'll play. Who's he supposed to be?"

"Jiminy Cricket."

"Right, the lying thing. I thought your nose grew a little bit."

"I'm not Pinocchio!"

"'Course you're not," said Emma, sitting down into the car and closing the door behind her. "Because that would be ridiculous."

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

_"I say we fight!" cried Prince Charming, banging his fist down onto the round table._

_"Fighting is a bad idea," it was Jiminy Cricket who had spoken. Only able to speak in cricket language, he was talking to a grammar phone that was translating his speech into English and was looking up through a large magnifying glass due to being no taller than two centimetres. "Giving into one's dark side never accomplishes anything."_

_"And how many wars has a clear conscience won?" As Prince Charming spoke, Red Riding Hood and her grandmother, who was knitting a baby blanket, watched him closely from the other side of the table. "We need to take the Queen out before she can inflict her curse."_

_"Can we even trust Rumplestiltskin?" wondered Doc._

_"I've sent my men into the forest," interrupted King Arthur; nineteen, flaxen haired, lithe yet muscular, he sat two places to Prince Charming's left. "The animals are abuzz with the Queen's plan. The high priestesses are abuzz with it too, isn't that right, Morgan?"_

_Across the table Morgan le Fay, twenty, dark haired and curvy, nodded gravely, her hands clasped on the table in front of her, her eyes closed as she attempted to read the future through the hazy fog that was blocking her vision._

_"This is going to happen unless we do something," agreed Prince Charming._

_"There's no point," Snow White interrupted. She stared up, determinedly, at her husband. "The future is written."_

_"No, I refuse to believe that. Good can't just lose."_

_"Maybe it can."_

_"No," Prince Charming crouched down to his wife's height. "No, not as long as we have each other. If you believe him about the curse, then you must believe him about our child. She will be the saviour."_

_The double doors burst open with an almighty bang._

_"What the hell is this?"_

_"Our only hope of saving that child."_

_As four men pulled a tree on a cart into the room, the Blue Fairy floated into the middle of the table and hovered there._

_"A tree?" interrupted Grumpy. "Our fate rests on a tree? Let's get back to the fighting thing."_

_"The tree is enchanted," trilled the Blue Fairy. "If fashioned into a vessel it can ward off any curse." Then, she turned to the old man sat to her right. "Gepetto, can you build such a thing?"_

_"Me and my boy," said Gepetto, ruffling the head of an eight year old boy in a bonnet who was sat by his chair. "We can do it."_

_"This will work," beamed the Blue Fairy. "We must have faith," as Prince Charming and Snow White linked hands, the Blue Fairy looked nervous as she continued. "There is, however, a catch. The enchantment is, indeed, powerful, but all power has it's limits. And this tree... can protect only one."_

_Everyone in the room knew what this meant._

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

"Don't take me back there!" protested Henry as Emma pulled him through the gate of 108 Mifflin Street.

"I have to," replied Emma. "I'm sure your parents are worried sick about you."

"I don't have parents, just a Mom, and she's evil!"

"Evil? That's a bit extreme, isn't it?"

"She is," Henry's voice was barely above a mumble, but Emma heard every word. "She doesn't love me, she only pretends to."

"Kid," sighed Emma, leaning down to be face to face with him. "I'm sure that's not true."

At the end of the pathway, the front door of 108 Mifflin Street opened.

"Henry?" A woman, the exact replica of a character from Henry's book, wearing a lose fitting full knee length dress and a pair of black heeled shoes, came clopping down the pathway in a run. "Henry!" she engulfed him in a hug, almost crushing him into nothingness. "Are you ok? Where have you been? What happened?"

"I found my real Mom!" Henry spat, running off into the house.

Regina Mills looked horror-struck and terrified as she turned to Emma.

"You're Henry's birth mother?"

"Hi," squeaked Emma.

"I'll just go check the lad, make sure he's alright."

Neither Regina nor Emma acknowledged the Sherriff, who had obviously been with Regina, keeping her calm during Henry's absence; British, in his late twenties or early thirties, he seemed a kind, if slightly dense, person.

"How would you like a glass of the best apple cider you ever tasted?" Regina was kind and courteous to Emma, though her smile was stretched to it's limit and obviously fake.

"Got anything stronger?"

Regina led her into the house, leaving her in the living room while she went to get two glasses from the kitchen. As Regina returned, Emma asked. "How did he find me?"

"No idea," replied Regina, pouring a glass of wine for both her and Emma. "When I adopted him he was only three weeks old. Records were sealed, I was told the birth mother didn't want to have any contact."

"You were told right."

"And the father?"

"There was one."

"Do I need to be worried about him?"

"No," replied Emma, assuredly. "He doesn't even know."

"Do I need to be worried about you, Miss Swan?" Regina handed Emma the glass of wine as she spoke.

"Absolutely not."

"Madame Mayor," the Sherriff was at the top of the stairs. "You can relax. Other than being a tired little boy, Henry's fine."

"Thank you, Sherriff," said Regina; hands on his hips, the Sherriff walked away. When he was gone, Regina turned back to Emma. "I'm sorry he dragged you out of your life. I really don't know what's gotten in to him."

"Kid's having a rough time," Emma passed Regina into her living room. "Happens."

"You have to understand, ever since I became Mayor balancing things has been tricky; my father often looks after Henry for me when I am busy," Regina reached the fireplace. A candle in an intricately designed stand stood on the mantelpiece of the fireplace along with an ornately crafted wooden clock and a picture of an aged, balding man in his sixties or seventies; a picture of an owl sat on a branch hung above them. "You have a job, I presume?"

"Uh, I keep busy, yeah."

Emma placed her half drank glass of wine onto the table.

"Imagine having another one on top of it," said Regina, settling herself opposite Emma in the other chair. "That's being a single Mom, so I push for order. Am I strict? I suppose. But, I do it for his own good. I want Henry to excel in life. I don't think that makes me evil, do you?"

"I'm sure he's just saying that because of the fairy tale thing," mused Emma, picking up her glass again.

"What fairy tale thing?"

"You know, his book," said Emma. "How he thinks everyone is a cartoon character from it. Like his shrink is Jiminy Cricket."

"I'm sorry, I really have no idea what you're talking about."

"You know what?" said Emma, sighing. "It's none of my business; he's your kid and I really should be heading back."

"'Course," said Regina, standing up quickly, almost like she had sat on a tack.

Emma finished the last of her drink and exited when Regina held the door open for her; pulling her keys out as she walked down the pathway, she turned. There, watching her from his bedroom window, was Henry.

It had begun to rain; Emma got into her car and started the engine. As she drove away and blinked to keep herself awake, Emma caught sight of something very familiar. Henry's book.

"Sneaky bastard."

Then, she saw it; right in the middle of the road was a white wolf. She gasped, slammed her foot on the brake and the beetle, failing to find grip at it's speed on the rain soaked road, skidded and, with a rather loud bang, crashed into the Welcome to Storybrooke sign, knocking Emma unconscious. As the door flopped open, the wolf howled victoriously.

In the passenger side foot well of the beetle, Henry's storybook began to flap in the wind; a page, with flying monkeys on it, flicked into a page with a hookah smoking caterpillar on it. Then, in one large gust of wind, several pages, adorned with both words and pictures, flicked revealing an image of Gepetto and Pinocchio working on the enchanted tree.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

_As Gepetto and Pinocchio worked on the enchanted tree in one tower, Snow White stood in the other, watching the horizon._

_"I don't want to do this!" she protested, turning back to her husband, who was sat by their babies crib._

_"It has to be you," said Prince Charming._

_"I'm not leaving you!"_

_"It's the only way," he assured her, holding her against him. "You'll go in there and you'll be safe from the curse!"_

_"He said it would be on her twenty eighth birthday!"_

_"What's twenty eight years when you have eternal love? I have faith. You'll save me as I did you."_

_She kissed him lovingly, deeply, passionately and then, it happened. She recoiled in pain, almost bent double._

_"What is it?"_

_"Ohh, the baby," gasped Snow White. "She's coming!"_

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

_Rumplestiltskin reclined in the branch of the tree in his cell and stared at the wall. It had been exactly two years since he had finished the curse; eleven months since his entire plan had come to fruition and now, the fact that the Dwarves had left his cell unguarded informed him of one thing. Everything was in place._

_Belle was safe, he was imprisoned and had been for six months, the saviour was being born and the magic potion was where it needed to be. He reached a long clawed finger into his leather jacket, pulled out the curse and a small picture._

_The Queen had been unable to sacrifice the thing she loved most - as he had predicted. Such a shame after all his tutoring. Thus, it now fell to him to cast the curse._

_He stared at the picture; he'd never been able to rip off the other half of the picture for some reason, even though _she_ was long gone - dead, by his hand, in fact. The picture of him, Bea and his wife almost shimmered in his hands and, summoning a ball of flame into one hand, he dropped the picture and the curse into the flames, lowering them to the floor._

The thing I love most_, he thought, _the last surviving remnant of Bae. Now gone. But, it is worth it_._

_The curse whirled high into the air, ripping through the bars of his cell as the purple tornado of magic grew taller and taller and wider and wider; bracing himself against the wall, he leaped into the tornado._

_And, as Rumplestiltskin ceased to be and Mr. Gold replaced him, he couldn't help but let a self satisfied smirk cross his face; the last thought that crossed his mind as Rumplestiltskin was _'I'm coming Bae; I'll find you.'

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

_Several miles away, Belle stared out of the window of the Dark Castle as the curse began engulfing the land as it came closer._

_The mountain air filled her nostrils as she leaned out of the window. She braced herself as the tornado grew closer; the roof of the Dark Castle went flying into the air, followed by the curtains, Rumplestiltskin's spinning wheel and several of her books._

_Everything was going accordingly to plan. The chipped cup that she had broken when she was still new at being Rumplestiltskin's maid floated by; she reached out a hand, gripped it tightly, pulled it close to her and allowed the curse to engulf her. As it did so, her dress flapped in the wind, her hair lashed around her face and she heard the prisoners in the basement scream; Belle was gone - in her place in Storybrooke would be Isabella Gold._

_Strangely, this didn't feel to bad. No. In fact... it felt... good. Perfect._

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

_Up on the battlements of the castle, Grumpy took a large gulp of his gin and then, suddenly kicked Sleepy, crying. "Wake up! Wake up!"_

_Sleepy gasped into consciousness and stared up at Grumpy._

_"Look!" Grumpy cried, pointing into the distance. "Look!" racing to the bell, he rang it hard, "The curse! IT'S HEEEEEEEEERRRRRRRRRRREEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"_

_Arthur, who had come sprinting along the battlements at Grumpy's cry, swore to himself, "Jesu!" and was gone down the stairs in seconds, bellowing loudly to gather attention._

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

Emma awoke on a strange bed in what appeared to be a jail cell. In a cell opposite, someone was whistling; looking over to the person, she seemed confused.

"What're you looking at, sister?" he sneered.

Leroy was shorter haired with a buzz cut and wore a mechanics overalls.

"Hey, Leroy, manners!" scolded an elderly man who was dressed as a mechanic and was repairing the clock on the wall. "We have a guest. So," he added to Emma. "You are Henry's mother? How lovely for him to have you back in his life!"

"Actually," said Emma, clutching her head. "I was just dropping him off."

"Don't blame you," agreed Leroy. "They're all brats; who needs 'em?"

"Well," said the old man, tersely. "I'd give anything for one. My wife and I we tried, for many years, but, uh, it was no' meant to be."

"Well, cry me a river," sneered Leroy.

"Leroy," said the Sherriff, arriving. "If I'm going to let you out, you need to behave," he opened the cell. "Put on a smile and stay out of trouble."

Leroy gave him a mock smile and passed him.

"Seriously?" questioned Emma, resting her head on the bars of her cell.

"Regina's drinks," he said, smiling. "A little stronger than we thought."

"I wasn't drunk," she replied. "There was a wolf standing in the middle of the road!"

"A wolf. Right."

"Graham?" the voice of Regina came from outside the office; she seemed almost in tears as she burst in. "Henry's run away again and we have to-" she caught sight of Emma. "What's she doing here? Do you know where he is?"

"Lady, I haven't seen him since I dropped him at your house, and, I have a pretty good alibi." Emma gestured to the bars.

"Yeah, well he wasn't in his room this morning."

"Have you tried his friends?"

"He doesn't really have any. He's kind of a loner."

"Every kid has friends," noted Emma, sadly. "Did you check his computer? If he's close to someone, he'd be emailing them."

"And you know this, how?"

"Finding people is what I do. Here's an idea: how about you guys let me out and I'll help you find him?"

Back at Regina's house, Emma opened Henry's email box. It was empty.

"Smart kid," said Emma. "Cleared his inbox. But, I'm smart too. A little hard disk recovery utility I like to use."

"I'm a little more old fashioned in my techniques," admitted Graham. "Pounding on pavement, knocking on doors, that sort of thing."

"You're on a salary," said Emma as complex code came scrolling across the screen. "I'm paid for delivery. Pavement is not a luxury that I get. Huh, here's a receipt for a website 'www dot who's your momma dot org'. Its expensive. He has a credit card?"

"He's ten," noted Regina.

"Well, he used one," Emma typed on the computer. "Let's pull up a transaction record. Mary Margaret Nolan - who's Mary Margaret Nolan?"

"Henry's teacher."

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

At the local school, Mary Margaret Nolan walked between her class, holding a bird gently between her hands.

"As we build our bird houses remember, what it's making is a home, not a cage. The bird is free and will do what it will. This is for them, not us," Mary Margaret Nolan, the exact image of Snow White and dressed in a white woollen shirt and plain black, knee length skirt, reached the window. "They're loyal creatures," she allowed the bird to fly into the blue bird house attached to the tree outside the school. "If you love them and they love you, they will always find you."

The recess bell rang. Her students clambered to their feet and almost ran from the classroom in anticipation of recess. Mary Margaret bellowed. "We'll pick this up after recess. No running!" One of her female students offered her an apple. "Why thank you!"

Mary Margaret scooped up her bag and turned; Regina, a face like thunder, was shoving her way through the students. "Miss Mills, what are you doing here?"

Plopping her bag down onto the desk, Regina blinked at Mary Margaret, watching her body language in an attempt to see how to handle the situation. "Where is my son?"

"Henry? I assumed he was home sick with you."

Regina snapped. "Do you think I'd be here if he was!?" and Mary Margaret caught sight of Emma, stood in the doorway; Regina made nary a glance in Emma's direction, but continued. "Did you give him your credit card so he could find her?"

"I'm sorry, who are you?"

"I'm Emma, I'm his-"

"The woman who gave him up for adoption."

It was Regina who finished Emma's sentence; Emma, being a cold, hard woman herself, could hear the steel in Regina's voice, even though Regina was not talking to her.

Mary Margaret slipped her bag off of her shoulder and placed it onto the desk, pulling open the zipper. As she reached into her bag and pulled out her purse, Emma asked. "You don't know anything about this, do you?"

"No," replied Mary Margaret, flipping open her purse. "Unfortunately not," she lowered her purse, so that both Emma and Regina could see the empty slot where her credit card should have gone. "Clever boy. I should never have given him that book."

"What in the hell is this book I keep hearing about!?"

Regina was almost bellowing now, utterly furious and ready to strangle Mary Margaret.

"Just some old stories I gave him," replied Mary Margaret. Then, she continued tentatively, attempting not to offend the Mayor anymore than she already had. "As you well know, Henry is a special boy. So smart, so creative. And, as you might be aware, lonely. He needed it."

"What he needs," smiled Regina. "Is a dose of reality. This is a waste of time," she swirled around and stalked away, knocking the books off of the shelf and snapping. "Have a nice trip back to Boston!" to Emma.

Once she had gone, Emma moved to help Mary Margaret, who had begun to pick up the books. "Sorry to bother you."

"No, it's ok," Mary Margaret heaped several books into her lap. "I fear this is partially my fault."

"How's a book supposed to help?" inquired Emma, intrigued.

"What do you think stories are for?" smiled Mary Margaret, rising to her feet. "These stories are classics; there's a reason we all know them. They're a way for us to deal with our world, a world that doesn't always make sense."

Mary Margaret began to lead Emma from the classroom; as the two walked down the hall together, she continued on oblivious to Emma's discomfort. "See, Henry hasn't had the easiest life."

"Yeah, she's kind of a hard-ass."

"No, it's more than her. He's like any adopted child, he wrestles with that most basic question they all inevitably face: 'Why would anyone give me away?'" Then, her words sunk in and she realised what she had said and whom she was talking too. "I am so sorry. I am so sorry, I didn't mean in anyway to judge you."

"It's ok," mumbled Emma.

"Look, I gave the book to Henry because I wanted him to have the most important thing anyone can have. Hope. Believing in the possibility of a happy ending is a very powerful thing."

"You know where he is, don't you?"

"You might want to check his castle."

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

_Snow White lay on the bed, bent double, legs wide and screaming loudly. Prince Charming sat by her side, one arm around her, the other clutching her hand._

_"I can't have this baby now!" bellowed Snow White through another bolt of pain._

_"Doc, do something!" ordered Prince Charming; Doc leaned forward and, with a moist rag, mopped her head. "It's going to be ok! The wardrobe's almost finished, just hold on!"_

_As Snow White gave several ear splintering cries, the door burst open; Gepetto, apron wearing and covered in saw dust, gesticulated wildly. "Quickly! It's ready!"_

_Prince Charming swooped down to lift up his wife, but Doc cut him off. "It's too late, we can't move her!"_

_"Push!" ordered Prince Charming; Snow White wrenched backwards, expelling her child into the world. Shrieking loudly, the new baby was wrapped in the knitted blanket - adorned with her name - by Doc and handed back to the happy couple._

_Then, a heart wrenching thought filled Snow White's mind. "The wardrobe. It only takes one."_

_The sound of Queen Regina's guards entering the castle echoed throughout the massive stone building._

_"Then our plan has failed," breathed Prince Charming, rubbing his wife's back comfortingly. "At least we're together."_

_"No," Snow White, jaw clenched in determination, spoke. "You have to take her; take the baby to the wardrobe!"_

_"Are you out of your mind?"_

_"No, it's the only way - you have to send her through!"_

_"No, no, no, you don't know what you're saying!" protested Prince Charming._

_"No, I do!" Snow White was vehement in her remonstrance of her husband's words. "We have to believe that she'll come back for us. We have to give her her best chance."_

_Prince Charming kissed his daughter's forehead, Snow White whispered, "Goodbye, Emma." and then kissed her daughter's forehead too, handing her newly born offspring to her husband. Despite Emma being in between them, he leaned down and kissed Snow White passionately, before unsheathing a sword and racing into the hallway as his wife burst into tears._

_Baby in his arms, Prince Charming engaged two of the guards in combat; twirling and crashing, his sword and theirs met in combat, Emma wailing loudly. One of the guards lunged and he leaned backwards to avoid it, receiving a large slash across the chest for his efforts. Knocking one of the guards to the ground, he stabbed the other through the chest. He raced the length of the hall and kicked open the wooden door to the room that contained the enchanted wardrobe. Throwing open the doors, he put down his sword and placed his baby daughter into the wardrobe._

_He kissed his daughters forehead, whispered "Find us," and then slammed the double doors as his new-born daughter babbled unintelligently. Picking up his sword, he whirled around as two more of the Queen's guards burst into the room. Weapons met in combat and he managed to fight off one guard, unintentionally leaving himself vulnerable to the second guard, who stabbed him directly in the stomach._

_"NOOOO!" King Arthur, bursting in from the hallway where he had been fighting another guard, brought Excalibur crashing down; the second guard whirled around, knocking him backwards through the stain glass window and allowing him to be engulfed by the curse before he hit the floor._

_Eyes wide, Prince Charming slumped to the floor; the first guard flipped his sword around and began thumping on the door of the wardrobe, which promptly smashed under the force of his strikes._

_The wardrobe was empty._

_Emma was gone._

_They had won._

_A smile graced Charming's face in relief and he fell into unconsciousness._

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

Henry's castle, a large wooden structure sat on the Storybrooke playground near the beach, was indeed where Emma found her son as she clambered up the ladder, book in hand.

Sitting herself next to him and feeling the wind blow through her hair, she handed him the book. "You left this in my car." He took it and, moving a lock of her hair out of her face, Emma stared out across the bay; the clock tower, sat on top of the Storybrooke Library still, as it had the night before, read 8:15. "Still hasn't moved, huh?"

Henry's voice was quiet, sad and defeated. "I was hoping that when I brought you back things would change here. That the final battle would begin."

"I'm not fighting any battles, Kid."

"Yes, you are!" protested Henry, staring directly at her; there were those eyes again! "Because it's your destiny. You're gonna bring back the happy endings!"

"Can you cut it with the book crap?"

"You don't have to be hostile," Henry informed her kindly. "I know you like me; I can tell. You're just pushing me away because I make you feel guilty. It's ok - I know why you gave me away," Emma looked utterly horrified at her son's words. "You wanted to give me my best chance."

Emma looked close to tears; looking away from him and staring across the bay, she asked. "How do you know that?"

"It's the same reason Snow White gave you away."

"Listen to me, Kid," sighed Emma. "I am not in any book. I'm a real person and I'm no saviour. You were right about one thing; I wanted you to have your best chance, but it's not with me. Come on, let's go."

She hopped off of the castle, ignoring the sad look on her son's face as he cried "Please, don't take me back there!" and began running off the castle after her. "Just stay with me for one week! That's all I ask! One week and you'll see I'm not crazy!"

"I have to get you back to your Mom!" protested Emma, wheeling around to face her offspring.

"You don't understand! You don't know what it's like with her! My life sucks!"

"Oh, you want to know what sucking is!? Being left abandoned at the side of the freeway; my parents didn't even bother to drop me off at a hospital!" Emma, despite herself, had burst into floods of tears. "I ended up in the foster system; I had a family until I was three. Then they had their own kid, so they sent me back!" Composing herself and leaning down, she put herself face to face with Henry. "Look. Your Mom is trying her best. I know it's hard, and I know sometimes you think she doesn't love you... but at least she wants you."

"Your parents didn't leave you on the side of a freeway, that's just where you came through."

"What?"

"The wardrobe," stated Henry. "When you went through the wardrobe you appeared in the street. You parents were trying to save you from the curse."

"Sure they were," laughed Emma, at what she thought was Henry's attempt at cheering her up. "Come on, Henry."

And, with that, she began to lead him back to the town.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

_With the castle now abandoned, Snow White stumbled across the hall, clutching her stomach._

_"No!" she cried, catching sight of her unconscious husband. "No. No!" She raced to his side, falling to her knees in by his head, which she took into her hands. "Please. Please, come back to me!"_

_She brought her head swooping down and passionately kissed him in an attempt to wake him; it didn't work. Her head swooped down again, her lips locking with his. Pulling away, she looked horrified down at her husband and failed to hear the clunking of high heeled shoes on the cobbled floor._

_"Oh, don't worry dear."_

_For once, Queen Regina actually sounded sympathetic. Throwing down her hood, she smiled maniacally. "You won't even remember who you are. You'll be trapped in a bad marriage and an unfulfilled life and that will be my happy ending."_

_"Why did you do this?"_

_Queen Regina loomed overheard, leaning down so that her face and the face of her former-step daughter and most hated enemy in all the realms were on identical levels. "Because this is my happy ending!" Two of her guards appeared in the door. "The child?"_

_"Gone," Queen Regina's head snapped in their direction. "It was in the wardrobe. Then, it was gone. It's nowhere to be found."_

_"Where is she!?"_

_"She got away," Snow White, holding Prince Charming in her arms, smiled brightly. "You're going to lose. I know that now. Good will always win."_

_"We'll see about that," Queen Regina laughed as the curse began to rip at the castle, pulling large chunks of the roof into the air._

_"Where are we going?" cried Snow White._

_Victorious at last, Queen Regina replied. "Somewhere horrible. Absolutely horrible," Two windows burst open allowing the curse entrance to the castle. "A place where the only happy ending... will be mine."_

_The three were engulfed by the curse._

_****__~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_

The door to 108 Mifflin Street swung open and Regina Mills, an eyebrow raised at her wayward son, stood in the doorway, her hands on her hips. Henry ran from Emma's side and passed his adoptive mother without even looking at her. She turned to watch him go up the stairs, then turned to Emma.

"Thank you."

Much to her credit she did actually sound thankful.

"No problem," replied Emma, smiling a little.

Moving onto her front doorstep, hands in her pockets, Regina continued. "He seems to have taken quiet a shine to you."

Emma chuckled. "You know what's kind of crazy? Yesterday was my birthday and, when I blew out the candle on this cupcake I bought myself, I actually made a wish that I didn't have to be alone on my birthday. And then, Henry showed up-"

"I hope there's no misunderstanding here?" questioned Regina, still on the front step.

"I'm sorry?"

"Don't mistake all of this as an invitation back into his life," Emma opened her mouth to protest, but Regina continued before she could even say a word. "Miss Swan, you made a decision ten years ago. And, in the last decade, while you've been doing - well, who knows what you've been doing? - I've changed every diaper, soothed every fever, endured every tantrum. You may have given birth to him, but he is my son!"

"I-"

"No, you don't get to speak!" Regina cut Emma off mid-sentence. "You don't get to do anything. You gave up that right when you tossed him away. Do you know what a closed adoption is? It's what you asked for. You have no legal right to Henry and you're going to be held to that! So, I suggest you get into your car," Regina eyed Emma's yellow beetle. "And you leave this town. Because, if you don't, I will destroy you, if it is the last thing I do. Goodbye, Miss Swan."

With that, Regina turned to head back into her house. When she reached the front door, Emma asked. "Do you love him?"

"Excuse me?" Regina turned back to Emma, an eyebrow raised and her voice giving away how offended she was.

"Henry. Do you love him?"

There was no emotion in Regina's voice; no love for a child that ordinary mother's had as she replied. "Of course I love him."

She slammed the door shut in Emma's face and thundered up the stairs; collecting Henry's book from his bag, she glared angrily down at the boy who had discovered the truth.

She clomped down the stairs, through the living room and to the mirror; her father looked up from his paper as she stormed past him. Taking a deep breath, Regina, in front of the mirror, lowered the book.

The title stuck her like a thorn in her side.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

In the Storybrooke General Hospital, Mary Margaret Nolan wheeled a trolley along the ward, stopping at each bed to replenish the dying flowers. Reaching the end of the ward, she clicked open the door and made her way into the room that was separate from the others; while the people in the ward were still awake and alive, the men in the two beds had, according to the doctors, little chance of recovery.

Placing a vase of flowers down next to one bed, Mary Margaret leaned down a kissed the man on the cheek, picking up his hand and rubbing it; his name tag read David Nolan. He was her husband and he, along with his twin brother, James, had been involved in a terrible car crash many years back and had been in comas and on life support systems ever since.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

Mr. Gold, the owner of everything in Storybrooke, watched as the blonde woman who had retrieved Henry Mills, entered the Foyer of Granny's Bed and Breakfast.

Now, normally Mr. Gold did not stand on the opposite side of the street watching women younger than his age but this woman was an exception to the rules, just like his wife. She'd only been in Storybrooke for one day and seemed very different. Not least for the fact that Storybrooke never had visitors and no-one went in or out of the town. Ever.

Now, his day had started normally enough; he had woken up embracing his wife, she had prepared breakfast, he had dropped her off at the library for her school reading group and then he had gone to collect the rent. That had been when he'd discovered that young Henry had run away from home and had returned with this mysterious woman.

He stepped across the road, blissfully ignoring his father-in-law, Moe French, who honked the horn of his van in annoyance. He pushed the door gently open; Granny's Bed and Breakfast had no bell, so he was able to slip in quietly. Pressing himself against the wall, he listened to the arguing and the voice of an elderly woman came down the stairs, followed by clumping, thudding footsteps: "You're out all night, and now you're going out again."

The owner, known to everyone as Granny - about sixty, her hair up in a bun and just beginning to show her age - and her granddaughter, Ruby - no more than twenty, attractive, slim, alarmingly slutty with red streaks in her hair and not afraid to use her assets - appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

"I should've moved to Boston!" bemoaned Ruby, gesticulating wildly as she fumed angrily at her grandmother.

"I'm sorry that my heart attack interfered with your plans to sleep your way down the Eastern Seaboard!" snapped her grandmother in reply.

The blonde woman, who had been trying to interrupt for a while, now took her chance to interrupt the squabbling women: "'Scuse me? I'd like a room?

Granny's eyes widened and bulged and Ruby gaped at the woman.

"Really?" breathed Granny; the blonde woman nodded and the elderly woman fished through the drawer, pulling out a dusty old ledger. As she thumped it onto the desk, dust filled the room, sending all the women coughing. Waving the dust aside and flicking through the ledger, Granny slipped her glasses onto her face and asked. "Would you like a forest view or a square view? Normally there's an upgrade fee for the square, but as the rent is due, I'll wave it."

"Square is fine," stated the woman.

"Now," began Granny, blinking over her half moon spectacles at the woman. "What's the name?

"Swan," said the woman. "Emma Swan."

His head thundered and what felt like lightning surged through his brain. Memories of his past life as Rumplestiltskin – the loss of his son, the butchering of his wife by his hand, his love with the elegant yet haughty woman, and his current love with Belle to name a few – came shooting back into his head; he was not Mr. Gold. No. He... was Rumplestiltskin.

He stepped out of the shadows at the end of the room and eyed the woman once over; her mother's nose and chin her father's determined look. He smiled; it was one of his familiar looks that only people who knew him – or remembered that they knew him in the case of most of the town – could see through. Belle, though, never fell for it, even under the curse as Isabella.

"Emma..." he said. "What a lovely name."

Granny and Ruby froze in abject horror. The blonde woman looked, almost confusedly, at him; she was sizing him up. Then, almost as if seeing him as anything but a threat, she smiled graciously and said. "Thanks."

Granny opened the drawer with a small, wooden clunk and pulled out a wad of cash, all rolled up into a ball. Handing it to him, her voice quivered as she said. "It's all here."

Mr. Gold didn't even count it as he took it with one long elegant hand and slipped it into his jacket pocket; he knew, under the terms of the curse, that it would always be the correct amount. "Yes, yes, of course it is, dear. Thank you," He smiled to Emma, and as he spoke, he placed particular emphasis on her name. "You enjoy your stay, Emma."

Then, he left, lingering long enough to hear Emma – the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming and the woman who would break his curse – ask, "Who's that?"

He saw the curtain move, as Ruby shifted the curtain back to watch him; then, he heard her reply to Emma. "Mr. Gold. He owns this place."

"The inn?" he heard Emma ask.

"No," replied Granny, severely. "The town,"; her voice turned kind and caring again. "So! How long will you be with us?"

"A week," replied Emma. "Just a week."

"Great," he heard Granny say. He could imagine her handing Emma the exact key – an old fashioned one with a swan on it; Belle's ironic idea to annoy Regina without Regina even knowing it – that had been created by the curse. Nonetheless, he head Granny say. "Welcome to Storybrooke."

And, smiling to himself, he turned on his heels and hobbled off home; it was time to waken his darling Belle. They had work to do, and if he was going to succeed, then he wanted his Belle by his side and not some fake cursed persona created to cover their tracks.

Above him, the clock tower clunked into life, the hand sliding from 8:15pm to 8:16pm. He stopped and shared a smile with Henry, who was beaming out of the upstairs window of 108 Mifflin Street.

As he resumed walking, he couldn't help but muse to himself. Things were progressing as planned.

Exactly as planned.

**_~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~_**

Isabella Gold sat on the kitchen work surface and watched her husband prepare dinner; she had long brown hair, a pleasing figure and a kind, smiling face. Just like her counterpart of Belle, Isabella was a bookworm underneath the kind exterior. There was nothing she loved more than curling up on the sofa, or in bed with her husband, and reading a good book. Her husband was more than willing to oblige her.

The kitchen was quiet - only the rhythmic sound of her husband chopping up onions filled the room; the silence wasn't awkward, merely familiar. Neither Golds' were loud, so the quiet suited them well.

Isabella adjusted her hair in front of her eyes, flicked the page in her book and without even lowering it, asked. "So, Henry's back where he belongs?"

"Well," said her husband. "He's back - not necessarily where he belongs, but back nonetheless."

"Mmm," Isabella grunted her approval over the top of a book. "And who found him?"

"His mother," came the fluid, almost watery, reply of her husband.

That made Isabella lower her book. She asked, "Regina left town?"

"No, no, dear," smiled Mr. Gold, indulgently. Belle may have been a bookworm as her Storybrooke Counterpart of Isabella, but she could also be a little airheaded too. "Henry's biological mother - the woman who gave him up for adoption ten years ago - Emma Swan. It will be the picture of true love, I can assure you of that."

"Lovely," said Isabella; she hadn't noticed that her husband had stopped chopping onions. Seconds later it happened; Isabella slumped forward, sliding off of the kitchen work surface and into the waiting arms of her husband.

Her body glowed blue - a bright shocking blue that had never graced Storybrooke before - and her dark eyes flickered open; she stared up at Mr. Gold, then sat up, her hair flicking out behind her.

She turned to him, anxiously, carefully, and got as close to him as she dared to. Her voice stuttering with hope, she asked. "R-Rumplestiltskin?"

"Hello, dearie," came the gratingly familiar, yet no less loving, reply of her lover, "Welcome back, Belle."

"Isabella," she corrected. "I mean - Belle - I think? Two sets of memories."

"You'll adjust, Belle," he said, helping her up. "You'll adjust soon enough."

"So..." Isabella broke the silence. "The curse worked? This is the land your son went too?"

"Yes," he assured her, holding her close. "Now all we have to do is wait for Miss Swan to believe. This will involve undermining Regina at nearly every opportunity - are you in?"

"As long as it is only to get your son back."

"It is, Belle," he smiled. "I think this is going to be fun - come along! We have work to do!"

* * *

_**To be continued.**_


	2. The Thing You Love Most

**The Curse of an Imp**

* * *

**Disclaimer:** _I own nothing. If I did, then the events of the end of Series 2 would never have happened that way. Ever. Once Upon a Time and all related concepts belong to Adam Horowitz and Edward Kitsis._

**Summary:** _What if Regina, in one act of humane kindness, had been unable to sacrifice her father and cast the curse? What if Rumplestiltskin had sacrificed something very dear to him to cast it? What if the curse had created other effects too?_

_Thanks to xXxKaraBeckerCutterxXx - who is awesome - for being my beta, for suggesting some of the ideas in this story (and letting me use them) and for helping me plan this story._

* * *

**Chapter Two: The Thing You Love Most**

* * *

The next morning at the Mayor's house, Regina sat in her study, flipping through the pages of Henry's storybook. She had just reached the wedding of Snow White and Prince Charming when one page in particular caused her to freeze. No wonder he viewed her as the Evil Queen, this book was an exact duplicate of the life she had before the curse.

Feeling the panic settle in her chest, Regina turned to the last few pages of the book, and stopped dead. They were there. The story had ended completely with the honeymoon of Snow and Charming, whatever happened after that was not in the book - the only thing that was in the book, however, were the four shredded pieces of paper. Someone had ripped the final pages from the book, and she had a pretty good idea who.

"Regina?"

Regina jumped and looked up. She'd been so enthralled with her thoughts that she hadn't heard her study door being opened, or anyone approaching her. "Daddy," she said, with a watery smile.

"What's the matter, darling?" Her father, Henry Mills Snr, asked.

"He think I'm the Evil Queen, daddy," Regina said, her voice cracking as she tried to conceal her tears. Henry Snr, balding and in his late fifties, set the mug of hot chocolate down on the table, and knelt beside his daughter, taking her into his arms as she sobbed. He had never been able to control her power hungry and abusive mother, but he had always been a constant force in her life, and had done his best to keep her safe and happy.

"It's alright, darling," Henry Snr soothed. "He's just rebelling."

"He wouldn't be rebelling if he hadn't received this book," said Regina. "It's that teacher's fault. Mary Margaret."

"No, my dear," said Henry Snr. "No it's not."

"Then how would you explain it, daddy?" Regina asked. "She gave him the book! She put these ridiculous ideas in his head!"

"Yes, she gave him the book," Henry Snr nodded. "But that is all she did. The rest is his imagination. You know, talking always helps."

"I didn't work with mother," said Regina.

"No, but she was a monster," said Henry Snr. "But your son is innocent. Go and talk with him, Regina, and don't yell, it will only make matters worse."

Regina sighed, nodded and shut the book. "I will do as you ask, daddy," she said, tucking the book under her arm and heading upstairs. She found her son, Henry Jnr, dressing for school in his bedroom. He was buttoning up his shirt, and tying his tie when she entered.

"The missing pages," said Regina, opening the book. "Where are they?"

Henry turned to her and gave her a glare of disdain. His slightly pudgy stomach strained against his school trousers. "It's an old book," he said. "Stuff's missing. Besides, what do you care?"

"I care because you think I'm some Evil Queen," Regina said. "And that hurts me, Henry. I'm your mother."

"No, you're not," said Henry, picking up a book from his desk, and stuffing it into his backpack.

"Well then, who is?" Regina asked. "That woman you brought here? I don't like what she or this book is doing to you," she pulled herself up to her full height and smirked. "Thankfully, both are no longer an issue."

Henry cast his gaze down, a look that Regina failed to miss.

"What?" she asked.

Out in the small town, the Clock Tower chimed twice as an elegant clang of metal on metal echoed. Regina whirled around, staring out of the window, as Henry seized his chance of escape. He grabbed his backpack, flung it over his shoulder and ran for the door.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Mr. Gold and Isabella left their house at 8:20 that same morning with Mr. Gold closing and locking the door of his pink mansion behind them. Looping their arms together, the two made their way down the road, passing William Theroux, a blonde haired nineteen-year-old slightly muscular tramp with a drug addiction, slightly small, tattered clothes and an apple in one hand.

"Mornin', Mr. and Mrs. G," William said as they passed.

"Good morning, William," Isabella said, smiling, as Mr. Gold acknowledged him with a nod of the head. Both Mr. Gold and Isabella knew who William actually was, but even under the curse he had never been much of a nuisance to them and hated Regina with a vengeance, so befriending him to annoy Regina was more than worth it, as was allowing him to sleep in the alleyway beside Mr. Gold's pink mansion.

As they approached the Clock Tower, it gave a metallic clang and moved to 8:25; they saw Regina, briefcase in hand, approach and look up at it.

"Well, would you look at that, Bella!" exclaimed Mr. Gold, pointing at the clock face with his cane. "They finally fixed the clock! I guess those rusty old innards finally sorted themselves out, huh?"

Regina whirled around, glaring. Across the street she caught sight of a sickeningly familiar yellow beetle. "Yes. It seems someone has fixed it."

"Lovely," beamed Isabella. "Maybe now I won't have to keep checking my watch when I do story time with the first graders. Well, good day, Madame Mayor."

Kissing Mr. Gold lightly, she pulled the keys out of her pocket, twirled them around her finger and disappeared into the library.

"All happy families with you, I see."

"Not really, Madame Mayor," replied Mr. Gold, evenly. "Bella and I are happy enough, but the disapproval of her father constantly lingers. Well, good day, Regina. I have rent to collect and people to terrorize."

"Don't be too evil."

"Said the pot to the kettle. Anyway, I digress. I have to have fun in some way, don't I?"

"Hmm," Regina chuckled. "Indeed. Good day, Mr. Gold. I'm cooking dinner for Henry; he needs to lose some weight so I'm making apple pie."

Mr. Gold watched her go, smirking gently to himself. Nodding to Isabella through the window of the library, in which she had just opened the curtains, he headed down the road to his Pawn Shop, mentally congratulating himself on a job well done. He paused at the door of his shop, and nodded to himself.

"Must remember milk."

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Emma paused and turned to her bedroom door, cup of coffee in hand. Grasping the handle, she pulled it open and, much to her surprise, found Regina on the other side, a basket of apples in her arms.

"Did you know the honey crisp tree is the most vigorous and hardy of all apple trees?" asked Regina. "It can survive temperatures of forty below and keep growing, it can weather any storm. I have one that I've tended to since I was a little girl," Regina knew, as clear as day, that her words were lies, but held out a bright red apple for Emma nonetheless. "And to this day, I have yet to taste anything more delicious than the fruit it offers."

"Thanks," said Emma, accepting the apple despite being confused.

"I'm sure you'll enjoy them on your drive home," Regina's words and the meaning behind them, namely that she wanted Emma out of town as soon as possible, were very clear as she offered the whole basket of apples to Emma.

"Actually, I'm gonna stay for a while," replied Emma.

"I'm not so sure that's a good idea," Regina said, her voice low and threatening. "Henry has enough issues; he doesn't need you confusing him."

"All due respect, Madame Mayor, the fact that you have now threatened me twice in the last twelve hours makes me want to stay more."

"Since when were apples a threat?"

"I can read between the lines," Emma informed her. "Sorry. I just want to make sure Henry's ok."

"He's fine, dear," Regina said. "Any problems he has are being taken care of."

"What does that mean?"

"It means I have him in therapy and weight loss classes," smiled Regina. "It's all under control. Take my advice, Miss Swan, only one of us knows what's best for Henry."

"Yeah," Emma agreed, almost as if seeing Regina in a new light. "I'm pretty sure you're right about that."

Since sneaky tactics weren't working, Regina took the direct approach. "It's time for you to go."

"Or what?"

Now, Emma's words were not just defensive, but offensive too, and Regina noticed both, her smile becoming as fake and fixed as it had the previous day when Emma has asked if she loved Henry.

"Don't underestimate me, Miss Swan," she threatened, leaning forward so that she and Emma were within whispering distance of each other. "You have no idea what I'm capable of."

And, with that, she marched away, leaving Emma to slam the door of her room shut.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

_As the Evil Queen reappeared within the walls of her castle, Prince Charming's sword embedded itself in the wall behind her._

_She whipped around, and strode across the room to her mirror. Her valet, a small man in his late fifties entered the room carrying a tray with a single glass of red wine._

_"Would you like a drink?"_

_"Do I look like I need a drink?" the Evil Queen snapped, causing the man's features to soften into a concerned yet scolding expression._

_"I was only trying to help," he replied, holding out the drink for her._

_"Thank you," said Regina, her voice loving and affectionate as she took the drink._

_"Now,_ that_ was an awfully big threat!" said a sarcastic voice from the Mirror. The Evil Queen turned to see a dark-skinned, bearded face appear. "'Destroy everyone's happiness'. How do you plan on accomplishing that?"_

_"The Dark Curse."_

_The face in the mirror faltered, his smirk sliding from his face as the valet looked deeply concerned._

_"Are you sure, Your Majesty?" asked the valet._

_"You said you'd never use that," the man in the mirror said, fearfully._

_"You made a deal when you gave away that curse."_

_"You traded it away."_

_Both the mirror and her Valet were talking over one another, but it was the Valet's words that made her react. "She won't be happy to see you."_

_"Since when do I care about anyone else's happiness but mine?" the Evil Queen growled. "Prepare the carriage; I'm going to the Forbidden Fortress."_

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

"Are you still here? Wouldn't you normally have moved on by now?"

"I don't even warrant a hello anymore," William Theroux said, looking around to find a dark-haired, curvy woman standing behind him. "Morgane?"

Morgane Morrison, a woman no older than twenty years of age, smiled patiently.

"So, now it's the silent treatment?" William asked. "I'm offended. But, if you must know, Mr. and Mrs. Gold have offered me the alley to live in."

"You know I was only joking," Morgane replied, pulling up a chair from the corner of the alleyway; her brother used them to keep the old tattered bed quilt he slept under in place. "And I'm glad you have somewhere."

"Indeed," William replied, sitting opposite her. "How's Dominic?"

"Same as ever."

"Grouchy, horrible and sexist?"

"That's it," Morgane said, her voice full of laughter. "He doesn't know I'm here."

"Where does he think you are?"

"At the store."

"Wait here," said William, climbing over the fence into Gold's garden. Morgane frowned as she heard the rattling of the back door, and then minutes later her brother was back, carrying an eight pint bottle of milk. "Here."

"I can't take this," said Morgane.

"Mr. Gold won't mind," said William, waving her off.

"Are you sure?"

"Positive. Now, hadn't you better be getting back?"

Morgane smiled and nodded. "If you ever need anything, William," she said, getting up.

"I know where to find you," William nodded.

"Yes," Morgane said, kissing his cheek. "You need a shave."

William smiled at his sister. "Now, shoo!" he said, waving her down the drive. He knew most people in town complained about him, and often wondered why he didn't live with his sister, when the true fact of the matter was if it wasn't for her horrid boyfriend, he would be with her.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

_Lounging around a cell in the dungeons of Camelot, King Arthur looked up as the door the opened with a loud creak. A dark haired, curvy woman leaned inside and held out a long, thin hand for him._

_Taking it, he got to his feet and exited the small damp room._

_"What are you doing here?" he asked the woman._

_"What does it look like?" the woman asked._

_"Does his 'Majesty' know you're here?"_

_"No, he doesn't," the woman answered. "Hurry. I've managed to overpower the guards, rendering them unconscious, but that doesn't mean you are safe yet. There's a horse waiting for you in the courtyard, you don't have much time."_

_"Thank you," said Arthur, taking her hand and kissing it. "Look after yourself!"_

_"Oh, don't worry about me," the woman smiled. She summoned a ball of fire, allowing it to hover in the palm of her hand, and smirked at the rightful King. "I'm going to have fun turning the guards into shish kabobs."_

_Arthur smiled, nodded and then kissed her cheek, as he fled the dungeons. As promised he found a horse waiting in the courtyard, but there was also a lantern lit in his brother's bedchambers. "Shit," he swore, as he clambered up onto the horses back._

_No sooner had he done so, the grand doors of the castle burst open, and Arthur's sixteen-year-old brother, Alexander-Eduard, wearing no more than a pair of sleeping shorts, burst outside. "STOP HIM!" he bellowed as several guards came running outside._

_"CLOSE THE GATES!" the guards yelled._

_"Oh, no you don't!" yelled the woman who had helped Arthur escape. She appeared in the window of the North tower, and pointed at the gate, watching as it halted, allowing Arthur and his horse to disappear into the night._

_"Seize her."_

_But before the guards could make do on their orders, the woman began firing fireballs from her window; out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Arthur and his horse disappearing into the nearby forest._

_Assured that her brother was safe, she focused on the image of her half-sister and, as the door to her bedroom burst open allowing guards to spill in, vanished._

_Her name: Morgan Le Fay._

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

_Hidden amongst the mountains and overlooking the Infinite Forest, the Forbidden Fortress was a truly terrifying sight; large, massive and dark, with colossal towers and metal gates._

_"How are you, dear?" Maleficent, blonde, dressed entirely in purple, holding a jug of wine in her right hand and a long wooden staff with an orb on top in the other, asked._

_"I'm doing fine," Regina answered._

_"Are you?" Maleficent asked, pouring herself a drink. "If it were me I'd be simply tortured, watching that flake of snow so happy." She settled herself into one of the chairs by the fire with a miniature unicorn by her side. "Weren't you about the same age when you were to be married, before she ruined it all?" Maleficent raised her goblet in a mock salute._

_"Yes," Regina agreed. "It was about the same age you were..." a smirk crept across her face. "When that Sleeping Beauty got the best of you, my dear Maleficent."_

_"I've move on," assured Maleficent. "You should consider doing the same."_

_"Enough games," Regina broke the reminiscing between the two. "You know why I'm here. I need my curse back."_

_"It's not yours anymore," Maleficent's reply was swift and sure. "A deal's a deal. I traded you my sleeping curse."_

_"Which failed," Regina said, Maleficent, who huffed in annoyance at the continued outcome of her curse. "Undone by a simple kiss. Now, please return what's mine."_

_"The Dark Curse?" asked Maleficent, almost disbelievingly. "Really? You must know that even its unholy power can bring your loved one back from the dead." Regina's face was almost like stone; hard and impassive, as Maleficent continued, leaning down to stroke the miniature unicorn by her throne. "Have you considered a pet? They can be quit comforting."_

_"The only comfort for me is Snow White's suffering."_

_"Well, it's her wedding night; I doubt she's suffering now." The mirth in Maleficent's voice was evident as she smirked._

_Regina leaned forward in her chair. "I need that curse. I know you keep it hidden in the orb above your staff."_

_"Hidden for the good of all, old friend," said Maleficent, as Regina's face faltered into a sneer. "Whoever created that monstrosity makes the two of us look positively... moral." Maleficent's eyebrows rose, showing that she considered neither herself, nor Regina, to be anywhere near moral. "Who did give it to you?"_

_"Where I got it's none of your concern," Regina rose elegantly from her chair; as she moved to the fire, the flames of which filled the entire hearth, wind began to blow throughout the room. "Hand it back."_

_"Must we do this?"_

_"Alas, we must," Regina replied. She summoned the fire from the hearth into a massive fireball as Maleficent vaulted to her feet and around her chair, turning in time to easily deflect the fireball with a shield from her staff._

_Regina raised her arm at the far wall, causing all of the swords and spears to form behind her, ready to fire. The miniature unicorn neighed, feeling the shift in magic._

_"NO!" Maleficent cried, as Regina launched her weapons at the horse. She leaped forward, summoning her shield causing them clatter to the floor._

_Regina sneered angrily, and then looked up; she raised her hands above her head, pulling the chandelier out of the ceiling, and crashing it down onto Maleficent. Her staff flew from her hand and the chandelier, being manipulated by Regina's magic, wrapped tightly around her. Regina used magic to throw the chandelier against the wall, defeating Maleficent, then leaned down and picked up her staff._

_"Love is weakness, Maleficent," Regina smirked. "I thought you knew that?"_

_"If you're going to kill me, kill me!" Maleficent snapped._

_"Why would I do that?" Regina looked up from the staff to her. "You're my only friend."_

_"Don't do this," Maleficent begged as Regina sneered and turned her staff upside down, smashing the orb. "This curse, there are lines even we shouldn't cross! All power comes with a price! Enacting it will take a terrible toll. It will leave emptiness inside you, a void you will never be able to fill."_

_"So be it," Regina said, sifting through the broken shards and picking up the parchment._

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

_"Who among us is tired of losing?" Regina, her Valet and a hoard of villains stood around a stone circle in which flames burned brightly. "That's why I called you here. To put an end to our misery," using magic, she made the fire increase in size and held out a hand to her Valet who handed her the first ingredient to make the Dark Curse work. "Today, we claim victory, and move to a new and better realm. A place where we can finally win."_

_"And we'll be happy?" asked an elderly blind witch._

_"I guarantee it," Regina smiled. "But first, I need something from you. A lock of hair from those with the darkest souls. You must trust me, because if you don't there are other ways," she flicked her hand and massive trees, spindly and foreboding, grew around them all. The blind witch pulled on a braid of her hair to separate it from the rest and then pulled out a knife, slicing off a lock of hair. Nearby, a dwarf did the same. "Wise choice."_

_Regina walked around the group with a bucket, into which they deposited the hair. Handing it back to one of her guards, she turned to her Valet. "All that remains is the final ingredient," he opened the box for her and held it out. "A prize heart, form my childhood steed. A glorious beast who's passing will fuel our victory. Let my wrath be unleashed."_

_Regina leaned down and threw the heart of her horse into the flames. Wind began to blow and the flame promptly turned purple, smoke rising higher and wider into the sky. Then right before her eyes the smoke died._

_A small goblin laughed wildly. "Yeah, you really unleashed something there!" Regina turned him to stone with a flick of her wrist._

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Regina walked in her garden, a happy contended smile on her face and a basket over one arm as her father sat on the porch of her back garden, reading a newspaper. She reached up and plucked a single, red succulent apple from the tree.

"The mirror strikes again," Sidney Glass, a dark skinned, greying man with no beard, approached, and holding a newspaper between his hands. In his happiness, he failed to notice that the newspaper on the porch lowered slightly, though Regina did not.

"You're late."

"Sorry," Sidney apologized. "I wanted to bring you the latest edition. I assure you, it's one of my better hatchet jobs."

"That's not what I asked for." She took the paper from him and began to read it, walking away with him scampering along behind. "What did you find out about her?"

"Well, the truth be told, there wasn't much," Sidney skirted around Regina, so that he was in front of her, now holding the paper. "She spent a lot of time in foster homes. She got into some trouble when she was a kid, but the details are locked up pretty tight. Since then, she's clean. Bounced around all over. The only thing I really learned was that she doesn't like to sit still."

Plucking another apple off of her tree, Regina turned away from him as she stuck it into her basket. "Well, that appears to have changed."

"I-I didn't know that, um, she had Henry while she was in Phoenix?" He skirted around her again. "How'd he wind up here in Maine?"

"So if I understand you correctly, you've found nothing of value. This means you have no value, Sidney. Do you know what I do with things that hold no value to me? I throw them away."

"I-I'll keep looking."

Sidney dashed away, leaving Regina with her tree. After watching him go, she eyed her father wearily at having to deal with incompetent people and then returned to picking apples.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

At Granny's Diner, Emma sat reading the paper, an apple in hand. As she lifted it up to take a bite, Ruby placed a cup of hot chocolate with cinnamon down in front of her. "Thank you... but I didn't order that."

"Yeah, I know," smiled Ruby. "You have an admirer."

Emma turned and saw Sheriff Graham Humbert sitting on the opposite side of the room. She sighed, picked up the cup and walked over to him.

"Ah," Graham smiled. "So you decided to stay."

"Observant," Emma noted. "Important for a cop."

"It's good news for our tourist business, but bad for our local signage." At the look Emma gave him, Graham began to explain himself. "It's-it's a joke... because you ran over our sign."

"Look, the cocoa was a nice gesture, and I am impressed that you guessed that I like cinnamon in my chocolate, 'cause most people don't, but I am not here to flirt, so, thank you, but no thank you."

Emma sat the cup down onto the table in front of him, her point made.

Graham looked confused. "I didn't send it," he said.

Henry, just finishing a slice of toast, swallowed and turned to Emma from his booth behind Graham's. "I did. I like cinnamon, too." He got up, sliding his backpack onto his shoulders.

"Don't you have school?" asked Emma.

"Duh, I'm ten," Henry said. "Walk me."

"So, what's the deal with you and your mom?" asked Emma as she and Henry crossed the road from Granny's Diner.

"It's not about us," Henry said, dodging the subject. "It's about her curse. We have to break it. Luckily, I have a plan. Step one: identification. I call it, "Operation Cobra".

"Cobra? That has nothing to do with fairy tales."

"Exactly, it's a codename. It'll throw the Queen off the trail."

"So, everyone here is fairytale character," Emma frowned. "They just don't know it."

"That's the curse. Time's been frozen. Until you got here." Emma began to take a bite of the apple she had brought with her from the diner. "Hey! Where'd you get that?"

"Your mom," Emma replied.

"Don't eat that!" Henry took the apple from her and threw it over her shoulder.

"Okay... Um, uh, alright." Emma blinked, confusedly, and then looked down at Henry. "What about their pasts?"

"They don't know. It's a haze to them. Ask anyone anything and you'll see."

"So..." Emma began to mull the information over in her head. "For decades, people have been walking around, in a haze, not aging, with screwed up memories, stuck in a cursed town that kept them oblivious.

"I knew you'd get it," Henry beamed. "That's why we need you; you're the only one who can stop her Curse."

"Because I'm the daughter of Snow White and Prince Charming?"

"Yes! And right now, we have the advantage. My mom doesn't know that." Henry unzipped his backpack. "I took out the end," he took out the pages from his book and handed them to Emma. "The part with you in it." Emma took the pages from him and glanced at one of them; an illustration of Prince Charming placing baby Emma into the Wardrobe shone up from the page; baby Emma was clearly wrapped in a white blanket with her name on it. "See? Your mom is Snow White!"

"Kid..." Emma began to protest.

"I know the hero never believes at first," said Henry, staring up at her with obvious adoration on his face. "If they did, it wouldn't be a very good story. If you need proof, take them, read them. But whatever you do, don't let her see these pages. They're dangerous. If she finds out who you are... then it would be bad." As he finished speaking, he and Emma reached the school. "I gotta go, but I'll find you later and we can get started. I knew you'd believe me!"

"I never said I did!" called Emma as Henry headed towards the school.

Henry ran off towards the school as he called back to Emma. "Why else would you be here?"

Mary Margaret Nolan caught sight of Emma over her shoulder and walked over to her, smiling. "It's good to see his smile back."

"I didn't do anything."

"You stayed. So, does the Mayor know you're still here?"

"Oh, she knows," Emma's tone of voice in her reply indicated that she wished Regina did not know. "What is her deal? She's not a great people person, how did she get elected?"

"She's been Mayor as long as I can remember," said Mary Margaret bluntly. "No one's ever been brave enough to run against her. She inspires quite a bit of... well, fear. I'm afraid I only made that worse by giving Henry that book and now he thinks she's the Evil Queen."

"Who does he think you are?" asked Emma.

"Its silly." scoffed Mary Margaret.

Emma laughed. "I just got five minutes of silly. Lay it on me."

"Snow White." Emma looked stunned as the school bell rang in the distance. "Who does he think you are?"

"I'm not in the book," still slightly stunned, Emma changed the subject. "Can I ask you a favour? Regina mentioned the kid's in therapy; do you know where I can find the doctor?"

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Archibald Hopper, the therapist that Emma and Henry had met on Henry's return to Storybrooke, was sat in his office, reading a newspaper when there was a knock on the door. It swung open revealing Emma to be on the other side.

"Hey."

"Emma Swan," Archie stood and tossed the paper aside. "I was just, uh, reading about you. Let me guess, you're here for help with a little post-traumatic stress?" he chuckled. "That diagnosis was free, by the way."

"I'm here about Henry."

"I'm sorry, I-I-I really shouldn't..."

"I know, I'm sorry," Emma apologized sitting on the edge of one of the leather sofas; she knew she was putting him in a difficult position. "I just... just tell me something. This fairytale obsession, what is causing it? I mean, he thinks everyone is a character in his book. That's... crazy."

"I-I hope you don't talk that way in front of him," Archie frowned and seemed concerned. "The word "crazy" is um... quite damaging. These stories - they're his language. He has no idea how to express complex emotions so he's translating as best he can, this is how he communicates. He's using this book to help deal with his problems."

"But he got the book a month ago," Emma informed him. "Has he been seeing you longer than that?"

"Um- Yes, he has."

"So it's Regina, isn't it?" Emma's reply was swift and to the point.

"Uh- his mother is a... very complicated woman, and uh- over the years, her attempts to try and bring Henry closer have only backfired." Archie moved to the filing cabinet and opened it, flicking through the 'M' section and removing a file. He handed it to her. "Why don't you take a look at the file? Um... see what I mean."

"Why are you doing this?" asked Emma.

"Well, he talks about you a lot. You're very important to him."

"Thank you," Emma took the file from him.

"Just uh... see that I get it back, okay?" he opened the door for Emma and she moved to edit. "Miss Swan. Just for the sake of the boy, be careful how you handle his... belief system. To destroy his imagination would be... would be devastating." Emma departed and Archie closed the door behind her. He sat himself back down into the chair and dialled a number on the phone. "You were right. She was just here."

"Did she take the file?" on the other end of the phone was the devil incarnate, Regina.

"Yes," he replied. "H-how did you know she was gonna come here?"

"Because I'm the one who gave her the idea."

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Back in her room at Granny's, Emma read through Henry's file. There was a knock at the door and she sighed at being disturbed. Opening it, she caught sight of Graham. "Hey there... if you're concerned about the "Do Not Disturb" signs, don't worry; I've left them alone."

"Actually, I'm here about Dr Archibald Hopper," Graham replied, though he did smile at her joke. "He mentioned you got into a bit of a row with him earlier?"

"No."

"I'm shocked, too, given your shy, delicate sensibilities," Emma couldn't help but smile grimly at Graham's joke about her. "He says you demanded to see Henry's files and when he refused you came back and stole them."

"He gave them to me," Emma informed him.

"Alas, he's telling a different tale," Graham smiled grimly. "May I check your room? Or must I get a search warrant?"

Emma opened the door fully, walked over to the bed and gestured to the files that were strewn around. "This what ya lookin' for?"

Graham picked up a file and looked over it. "Well, you're very accommodating. But, I'm afraid, Miss Swan, you're under arrest. Again." He began to cuff her.

"You know I'm being set up, don't you?" Emma asked.

"And who, may I ask, is setting you up?"

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Regina approached Storybrooke Elementary, where Mary Margaret was giving a class.

"Water... synthesize," Mary Margaret was teaching Synthesis to her class.

Regina coughed; Mary Margaret stood and approached her. "May I speak with my son?"

"We're in the middle of a lesson. Is it important?"

"Do you think I'd be here if it wasn't?" Regina's voice took on a steely tone and she walked away from Mary Margaret, taking Henry with her. "Henry, sweetie, I have some bad news. The woman who you brought here... she's been arrested. She broke into Dr. Hopper's office and stole his files. She's a con woman. She's trying to learn about us in order to take advantage of us. That's why she's sticking around. I'm sorry."

"No, you're not," Henry's words stung Regina.

"I know you think otherwise, but all I'm doing is trying to protect you. This is gonna be good for us, you'll see. Things will be better."

The school bell rang. "I gotta get back to class."

Henry left, leaving Regina hurt and sad.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Graham snapped a picture of Emma as she stood in front of a mug shot board.

"You know the shrink is lying, right?"

"To the right, please," Graham asked. "Why would he lie?"

"The Mayor put him up to this," Graham snapped a picture again after Emma stopped speaking. Then, once the picture had been taken, she continued. "She's gotta have something on him. He's terrified of her, like everyone else in this town."

"To the left," said Graham. Once again, Emma turned. "Regina may be a touch intimidating, but I don't think she'd go as far as a frame-job."

"How far would she go? What does she have her hands in?"

"Well, she's the Mayor. She has her hands in everything."

"Including the police force?" Graham knew immediately what Emma's words meant. He gave her a look and started to reply, but his words were cut off.

"Hey," Henry called as he run into the station. He was followed by Mary Margaret.

"Henry," Graham exclaimed, as the pudgy boy pushed past him. "Henry, what are you doing here?"

"His mother told him what happened," explained Mary Margaret.

"Of course she did," Emma eyed Graham, giving him a look as if to back up her previous point. Then, she turned to the brunette boy beside her. "Henry, I don't know what she said-"

"You're a genius," Henry said trying his hardest to keep the smile off his face.

"What?"

"I know what you were up to," he said. "You were gathering Intel," his voice dropped to almost a whisper. "For "Operation Cobra"."

"I'm sorry, I'm a bit lost," Graham interrupted.

"its need to know, Sheriff," said Henry. "And all you need to know is that Miss Blanchard's gonna bail her out."

"You are?" Emma asked. "Why?"

"I-uh—trust you," Mary Margaret replied. She looked determined in her words and a grinning smile stretched across Henry's face.

"Well. If you could uncuff me..." Emma extended her cuffed wrists to Graham. "...I have something to do."

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Regina sat in her office working on official town documents, when the sound of a chainsaw echoed through her office. She vaulted from her chair, staring out of the window with a horrified expression. Her father was protesting at Emma's actions in the garden, but Emma paid no attention to him as she sliced off a branch of Regina's apple tree.

"What the hell are you doing!?" Regina raced across the garden towards Emma.

"Picking apples," Emma shut off the chainsaw and dropped it to the ground.

"You're out of your mind?" Regina demanded. She felt her father's hand clasp on her shoulder and though she wanted to throw it off, she kept her attention on Emma.

"No, you are if you think a shoddy frame job's enough to scare me off. You're gonna have to do better than that. If you come after me one more time, I'm coming back for the rest of this tree. Because, sister, you have no idea what I am capable of," Emma left her threat hanging and walked off, leaving Regina and her father behind. "Your move."

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

_The Evil Queen stood brooding in the place where she had failed to cast the curse._

_"Perhaps it's for the best," said her Valet. "The forces you're summoning are darker than we can conceive."_

_"Oh, _now_ you're trying to protect me?" the Evil Queen's words were as hard as steel._

_"It's what I do."_

_"I know," the Evil Queen's voice became softer, more affectionate. "You're the only one who does."_

_"Helping you is my life."_

_"Well then help me understand why this curse isn't working."_

_The Valet eyed her shrewdly. "If you want to know that, then you need to go back to the person who gave it to you in the first place." Regina looked away, sneering at the thought. "Revenge is a dark and lonely road. Once you go down it there is no heading back."_

_"What is there for me to head back to?"_

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

_Several days later, Rumplestiltskin smirked as a rat scrambled up to the cage._

_"It's just us, dearie. You can show yourself."_

_In a cloud of purple smoke, the rat transformed into an elegant and beautiful woman dressed entirely in black. Rumplestiltskin made a sound indicating that he was pleased as he leaned closer._

_"That Curse you gave me..." the Evil Queen said, showing him the scroll. "It's not working."_

_"Oh, so worried," Rumplestiltskin taunted; the mirth in his voice touched Regina's anger, but she kept it in check and he continued. "So, so worried. Like Snow and her lovely new husband!"_

_For seconds, Regina's eyes bulged; Rumplestiltskin saw her jaw tick; as she spoke, her voice was filled with utter fury. "What?"_

_"They paid me a visit as well," clarified Rumplestiltskin for her, gloating both outwardly and inwardly as her face filled with colour and anger. "They were very anxious. About you and the Curse."_

_Regina stepped closer to the bars. "What'd you tell them?" she asked._

_"The truth!" Rumplestiltskin trilled. "That nothing can stop the darkness. Except, of course, their unborn child. You see, no matter how powerful, all curses can be broken," he paused. "Their child is the key. Of course, the curse has to be enacted first."_

_"Tell me what I did wrong," Regina commanded._

_Rumplestiltskin was back in his element; deals were his specialty. He smiled as he spoke. "For that, there's a price."_

_"What do you want?" the Evil Queen asked. As evil as she was, she wasn't stupid; she knew that Rumplestiltskin was determined to come out on top in whatever deal he was intending to make with her._

_"Simple," his voice was almost serene as he leaned his head through the bars to be almost nose to nose with her. "In this new land, I want comfort, both for me and Belle. I want a good life."_

_"Fine!" the Evil Queen snapped, thinking she'd won. "You'll have an estate, be rich."_

_"I wasn't finished!" clucked Rumplestiltskin impatiently. "There's more!"_

_"There always is with you," Regina replied, bored with his delaying of her answer._

_"Yeah, yeah..." sighed Rumplestiltskin, happily; his face broke into a smile that made even the Regina shudder inside. "In this new land," he paused, mulling his thoughts over for less than even a blink. "Should I ever come to you for any reason, you must heed my every request. You must do whatever I say. So long as I say "Please"."_

_"You do realize that should I succeed, you won't remember any of this?" inquired Regina; in her time she had made many a deal with Rumplestiltskin, but in her eyes this was the one most beneficial to her._

_"Oh well, then what's the harm?" said Rumplestiltskin as he languidly reclined back into his cell._

_"Deal," said Regina, wanting her answer more than ever. "What must I do to enact this Curse?"_

_"You need to sacrifice," began Rumplestiltskin with one of his familiar and alarmingly eerie flourishes. "A heart."_

_"I sacrificed my prized steed," Regina hissed._

_Rumplestiltskin leaped against the bars of his cell, grabbing Regina's neck with one very clammy hand; "A horse?" he whispered, disbelievingly, "This is the Curse to end all curses! You think a horse is gonna do? Great power requires great sacrifice. The heart you need must come from something far more precious."_

_"Tell me what will suffice," ordered Regina._

_"The heart of the thing you love most," replied Rumplestiltskin; both he and the Regina knew whom she loved most._

_Regina moved Rumplestiltskin hand from her throat and he recoiled it inwards, almost like the tongue of a frog snapping backwards into its mouth. "What I loved most died because of Snow White!" boomed Regina, furiously._

_Rumplestiltskin reached out a comforting hand; something about his motion and voice, however, indicated mocking on his part: "Is there no one else you truly love?" he asked; Regina merely stared at him and he continued, now in control of the conversation. "This Curse isn't gonna be easy. Vengeance never is dearie. You have to ask yourself a simple question: How far are you willing to go?"_

_Regina brought her face as close to Rumplestiltskin as she could stomach, locking eyes with him. "As far as it takes."_

_"Then please stop wasting everyone's time and just do it!" tittered Rumplestiltskin, smirking at her. "You know what you love... now go kill it!"_

_Regina didn't even deign him with a reply; she turned and walked away, vanishing in the same puff of smoke she had used to transform from the rat._

_Seconds later, the door to his prison, but not the cell - much to his annoyance - opened; rain poured down from outside and thunder and lightning flashed and boomed across the sky. He glanced up as a cloaked person appeared at the end of the cave. He didn't even need to truly look at the person to know who it was: "Hello... Belle,"_

_She almost ran to the side of the cage and flipped down her rain-sodden hood. To Rumplestiltskin it was obvious she had been waiting for the Queen to leave before coming in; her long dark hair tumbled in ringlets down her back._

_"Is everything done, my darling?"_

_"Everything is done," she replied; she held up a hand and began to tick off the things she'd done. "I've packed the trunks, all your magic potions and bargained items are packed in their cases, all the remaining deals have been struck - no loopholes, of course -" Rumplestiltskin smiled and she continued. "All the servants have been paid... Oh and I've packed my books and clothes - they may come in handy; I've got one on sailing that might be useful in the future - and I've made sure that your leather pants are firmly tucked in their boxes. Just for a rainy day."_

_"Well done," he smiled. "Well done, indeed."_

_There was a scuffing in one corner as someone approached and Belle whirled around, flicking up her hood._

_"Brace yourself, dearie," said Rumplestiltskin in her ear. "I'm going to teleport you back to the Castle... and soon, I activate the curse and we go to a new world."_

_"I can't wait," she said, kissing him. He kissed her back and, seconds later, she was gone._

_King Arthur emerged from the darkness. "Rumplestiltskin. I wish to make a deal."_

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Emma unlocked the door to her room at Granny's.

"Miss Swan?" Granny's voice spoke from behind, and Emma turned to her.

"Oh my, this is terribly awkward, but I need to ask you to leave." Emma looked stunned at the old lady's words. "I'm afraid we have a "No felons"-rule. It turns out it's a city ordinance."

"Let me guess: the Mayor's office just called to remind you."

"You can gather your things, but I need to have your room key back."

Emma handed her the key.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Having been summoned by the devil incarnate, Graham approached a crouched Regina, who was picking apples off the floor of her garden.

"Couldn't your father do that?" asked Graham.

"He's not a servant," Regina replied, then moved on to the subject she had summoned Graham to discuss. "She destroyed city property. I want her arrested."

"Again?" he questioned.

"What are you waiting for?"

"I'm just not convinced arresting her is the right plan." Regina stood up at his words, plenty of apples filling her basket. "And I'm not talking about your tree. We both know she didn't steel those files."

"Oh, do we?"

"I mean, she looked pretty shocked when I levelled the charges against her."

"That's because she doesn't like being caught," Regina knelt down again.

"Or because she was set up. And if she was, that means Dr. Hopper was lying. If he's lying that means that someone asked him to." The tone of Graham's voice on the word 'someone' indicated that he meant her and she stood up, glaring at him. "Are we really confident that the man's conscience won't eventually get the best of him?"

"I think your schoolboy crush is clouding your judgment. Remember, I made you Sheriff. And I can take it away just as easily."

"You want me to arrest her again? I will," Graham was back on the defensive.

"Good," Regina knelt down, pulling another basket towards her, throwing another apple into it.

"But she is gonna keep comin' at you," Graham stated. "And I know you, you are gonna keep comin' at her. You will do whatever it takes to get her out of here. And you may succeed."

"I will succeed!" Regina whirled around to face him and got up. "He's my son! It's what's best for him."

"I know that's what you believe. But if this escalates, it seems to me the only one who will get hurt is Henry."

Regina sighed, defeated.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Emma answered her phone as it rang. "Yeah?"

"Miss Swan," the devil incarnate was on the other end. "I'd be happy to continue demonstrating my power, but am I right in guessing your resolve to stay is only growing?"

"You have no idea," Emma crossed the road to her car and threw her red leather jacket into it.

"Well then. I think it's time we made peace. Why don't you drive over to my office" Emma slammed the car door. "Or walk, whatever suits you."

Emma hung up the phone and rolled her eyes.

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

"I'd like to start by apologizing, Miss Swan," Regina settled herself into a black chair in her Mayoral office with a glass of wine in hand.

"What?"

Regina put her glass down onto a coaster and folded her arms into her lap. "I just have to accept the reality that you want to be here."

"That's right," said Emma. "I do."

"...And that you're here to take my son from me."

"Okay," continued Emma. "Let's be clear: I have no intention of taking him from anyone."

"Well then, what are you doing here?"

"I know I'm not a mother, I think that's pretty self-evident, but I did have him, and I can't help that he got in my head and I want to make sure he's okay. The more you try to push me out, the more I want to be here, especially after seeing how troubled he is."

"You think he's troubled?" asked Regina. For one moment, both women were on the same page and both looked concerned.

"Well, he's in therapy, and I only got through a couple pages of his shrink's notes before you had me arrested. But putting all that aside, he thinks everyone in this town is a fairytale character."

"And you don't?" asked Regina. Out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of something moving at the door.

"How can I?" questioned Emma. "The poor kid can't even tell the difference between fantasy and reality and it's only getting worse. It's crazy and he's just getting fatter and fatter, or so it seems from Archie's notes, due to using food as a comfort."

"You think I'm fat and crazy?" Henry, stood in the doorway, looked hurt and wounded.

"Henry," Emma gasped. She looked over her shoulder to find him standing in the doorway. He turned and ran out of the office. Emma stood, almost as if to follow, then placed her hands on her hips at the slamming of the door and addressed Regina. "How long was he there?"

"Long enough," Regina smirked evilly.

"You knew he would be here."

"Did I know that my son comes to my office every Thursday at precisely five P.M. so I can take him for dinner before his therapy session?" Regina framed her answer in the form of a question. "Of course I did. I'm his _mother_." She reclined in her chair. "Your move."

"You have no soul. How in the hell did you get like this?" Emma stalked from the office, passing Regina's father.

"That was harsh," he said, entering the office and watching his daughter. Her smirk faltered for a moment. "You may have gotten rid of Miss Swan, but you've also hurt Henry."

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

_Regina stalked along the promenade of her castle. The face of the mirror appeared, following her through mirrors along her route. "What happened? Did you get your answer? What's going on? Your Majesty? Your Majesty!"_

_She entered the great hall, where her father was lighting candles. "Did Rumplestiltskin tell you what you needed to know?"_

_"Yes."_

_"And?"_

_"I'm not sure I should say. I'm conflicted," she said, as she began to pace._

_"How bad is it? Maybe I can help."_

_She stopped pacing. "I have to cut out the heart of the thing I love most."_

_Realization dawned on his face. "Me," he said, completely stunned by the unexpected answer._

_She turned to him. "Daddy, I don't know what to do."_

_"My dear, please, you don't have to do this."_

_"I have to do something." She resumed her pacing and he followed her._

_"Then move past this. I know this may sound self-serving, but you don't need to enact the Curse."_

_She addressed him, face to face. "But I can't keep living like this! What Snow did to me, what she took from me? It's eating me alive, Daddy. Her very existence mocks me. She must be punished."_

_He began to protest as she walked away. "But... If the price is a hole that will never be filled, why do it?" She stopped. "Stop worrying about Snow White and start over. We can have a new life."_

_"But what kind of life?" she asked. "All I've worked for, all I've built will be gone. My power will disappear. They already think I'm nothing."_

_"Power is seductive - look at what it did to your mother - but so is love and you can have that again." He held open his arms. After a moment, Regina stepped into his arms and he enfolded her in an embrace._

_"I just want to be happy."_

_"We can be. Of this, I'm sure." He said. She began to cry as he continued to speak. "I believe, given the chance, we can find happiness together. But the choice is yours. Kill me and lose a chance at happiness or spare me and be happy."_

_"But the curse?"_

_"Rumplestiltskin will stop at nothing to cast this curse. You know as well as I, dear, that he'll find a way." He released his grip on her and stared hard at her, wiping the tears from her cheeks. "What we need to do now... is to prepare for when he does cast it. And, when he does, you can be happy. With your soul intact. And with me. You won't be here, and, as Rumplestiltskin has agreed, you'll have the power you want as well."_

_"I think you're right."_

_Her father enfolded her in an embrace again, allowing her to continue crying._

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Mary Margaret got up as she heard a knock at the door to her apartment. Opening it slightly, she caught sight of Emma.

"Hey," Mary Margaret opened the door fully as Emma continued. "Just wanted to say thank you and, um," Emma handed her an envelope. "Pay you back the bail money." Emma, looking exasperated, sighed.

"You look like you need to talk."

Mary Margaret let her in and made two cups of hot chocolate with cinnamon.

"Cinnamon?" asked Emma as she sat at the table, sipping her hot chocolate.

Mary Margaret brought a plate of cookies to the table. "Oh, I'm sorry. I should have asked. It's a little quirk of mine. Do you mind?"

"Not at all," Mary Margaret offered Emma a cookie. "No, thanks. When you bailed me out, you said that you trusted me." Mary Margaret nodded. "Why?"

"It's strange ever since you arrived here; I've had the oddest feeling, like we've met before. I mean, I know it's crazy," Mary Margaret raised her own cup to her lips and took a drink of it.

"I'm starting to re-evaluate my definition of crazy," Emma informed her.

"For what it's worth, I think you're innocent," Mary Margaret looked at Emma over to top of her cup.

"Of breaking and entering or just in general?" asked Emma.

"Whichever makes you feel better?"

"Doesn't really matter what anyone thinks I did or didn't do," said Emma. "I'm leaving. Thank you for everything, but I think it's for the best. If I stay, Henry's only gonna keep getting hurt."

"What happens if you go?" asked Mary Margaret. At Emma's silence, she continued. "I think the very fact that you want to leave is why you have to stay. You care about him. Who will protect Henry if you won't?"

**~~~The Curse of an Imp~~~**

Henry, face splattered with chocolate smears and looking visibly distraught, sat in the chair in Archie's office, clutching Archie's umbrella, his thumb running up and down the handle.

Archie sat opposite him. "Are you sure you don't want to talk about it?" Henry said nothing and continued fiddling with the umbrella. "You know, that umbrella is kind of my good luck charm. Is that why you think I'm Jiminy Cricket?"

"I don't think you're anyone," sighed Henry, defeated.

Henry placed the umbrella onto the desk with a long, drawn out sigh as the door opened revealing Emma holding the storybook pages Henry gave her.

"Miss Swan," Archie was on his feet in an instant, rounding the chair. "Look, I can explain. The Mayor forced me-"

"I know, don't worry about it. I get it," Emma interrupted, just shy of physically shoving him out of the way. "Henry, I'm sorry."

"I don't wanna talk with you," Henry's head lay on the back of the chair.

"Miss Swan, if she knew you were here-"

"To hell with her!" snapped Emma, causing Archie to stop. Sitting down in the chair that Archie had vacated, with the rolled up storybook pages in her hand, she addressed Henry. "Henry, there is one simple reason I stayed here - You. I wanted to get to know you."

"You think I'm crazy and fat!"

"No, I think the _Curse_ is crazy. And it is," Emma sighed, momentarily locking eyes with Archie. "But that doesn't mean it isn't true. It is a_ lot_ to ask anyone to believe in, but there are a lot of crazy things in this world. So, what do I know? Maybe it is true."

"But you told my Mom-"

"-What she needed to hear." Henry blinked for a moment, his head tilting up to look at Emma. "What I do know... is that if the curse is real, the only way to break it is by tricking the Evil Queen... into thinking we're nonbelievers.'Cause, that way, she's not on to us. Isn't that what Operation Cobra was all about? Throwing her off the trail?" Emma locked eyes with Archie again to see that he was smiling down at her.

Beaming a true, happy smile, Henry sat up to face her. "Brilliant!"

"I read the pages," said Emma, gesturing to the rolled up pieces of paper in her hand. "And Henry, you're right - they are dangerous. There is only one way to make sure that she never sees them." She took the pages and threw them onto the fire, the pages setting alight instantly. "Now, we have the advantage."

Henry leaped from the chair and threw himself at her, hugging her tightly. Her arms closed around him, though the hug was still awkward. Henry sighed, happily. "I knew you were here to help me."

"That's right, Kid, I am." Emma stroked Henry's hair affectionately as she spoke. The two parted, Henry staring straight up at her. "And nothing," she said, mopping his chocolate smeared face with a tissue from her pocket. "Not even a curse, is gonna stop that."

Henry grinned and then hugged her again.

Hand in hand, the two walked out of Archie's office and down the street, blissfully unaware of Mr. Gold and his wife watching through a pair of binoculars on the street corner.

"Oh, this is really going to annoy Regina," smirked Isabella.

"That's what I'm counting on, Belle."

"Will you tell her?" asked Isabella, looking to her husband.

Mr. Gold did not even lower the binoculars as he spoke. "Of course."

**~~~The Curse of the Imp~~~**

In her garden, Regina tended to her tree, wiping and blowing off any chipped remains.

"What a mess."

"Not for long," Regina said turning to Mr. Gold, who was approaching. "What can I do for you, Mr. Gold?"

"I was just in the neighborhood, thought I'd pop by," Mr. Gold replied, walking away from her and circling the tree to look for the perfect apple. "Lovely to see you in such high spirits."

Regina chuckled. "Well, it's been a good day. I just rid the town of an unwanted nuisance."

"Emma Swan?" he queried. "Really?"

"Yes. I imagine she's halfway to Boston by now."

Mr. Gold finally found the perfect apple and plucked it from the tree. "Oh, I wouldn't bet on that." Regina turned to scowl at him. "The wife and I have just seen strolling down the main street with your boy. Thick as thieves, they looked. Interrupted our bird watching too; there's a rare peregrine falcon living in the guttering of Granny's."

"What?" questioned Regina.

Mr. Gold walked around her, so that he was in front, and turned to face her, apple in hand. "Perhaps you should have come to me. If Miss Swan is a problem you can't fix, I'm only too happy to help, for a price, of course."

Regina chuckled. "I'm not in the business of making deals with you anymore." Regina turned back to her tree and continued to tend to it.

"To which deal are you referring?"

She turned back to look at him. "You know what deal."

"Oh, right, yeah." He grinned. "The boy I procured for you." She turned away from him. "_Henry_. Did I ever tell you what a lovely name that was? No doubt named for your father - I assume that's where you got it?"

Regina's eyes bulged for a moment. Composing herself, she turned back to Mr. Gold. "Did you want her to come to town? You wanted all this to happen, didn't you? Your finding Henry wasn't an accident, was it?"

"Whatever do you mean?"

"Where did you get him?" asked Regina. Mr. Gold remained silent. "Do you know something?"

"I've no idea what you're implying."

"I think you do," said Regina. Mr. Gold still remained silent, but a smirk was creeping itself over his lips. "Who is this woman, his mother, this Emma Swan?"

"I would say you think you know exactly who she is," he replied. Regina stared, stunned, at him. "I really must be going."

Regina dashed around him, blocking off his path. "Tell me what you know about her!"

"I'm not gonna answer you, dearie, so I suggest you excuse me," Mr. Gold's answer seemed adamant enough, but Regina did not budge. _"Please,"_ he took a bite of the apple and walked away.

Regina, stunned at his use of that particular word, turned and watched him go as he threw the apple over his shoulder.

* * *

**To be continued.**


End file.
